Desperation
by HouseAddiction
Summary: House and Cuddy need to get social lives...so they're back on the dating scene. HUDDY ALL THE WAY! No flames, please.
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters of House, of course.**

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CHAPTER 1

Sitting in her office, Lisa Cuddy had to do everything in her power to stop herself from crying. Stacy Warner just sat there trying to comfort her. Obviously Lisa knew that she made the right decision when she told the doctors to cut off Alfredo's hand, but guilt was ripping through Lisa and Stacy knew that it wasn't going to go away anytime soon. She probably couldn't feel any worse than she was already feeling. Stacy just hoped House wouldn't walk in like she knew he did. He would just make everything worse and Lisa couldn't deal with that right now…she couldn't deal with it.

"He thanked me."

"He should have," said Stacy, relieved that Lisa was finally talking. She looked like she was on the verge of tears, so talking was good.

"We cut off his hand. If we'd figured it out earlier-"

"If you figured it out later, he'd be dead," said Stacy. Lisa had to understand that she made the right decision.

"I never figured it out at all," answered Lisa in a defeated voice. All thoughts of finishing that sentence vanished as the person who did figure out the case entered the room. Stacy turned around as the door banged open, and saw House enter the office. He was wearing a beige blazer and looked quite…groomed. It was the only word that came to Stacy's mind. Stacy groaned inwardly. _Here we go,_ she thought.

"Hello," said House cheerfully, limping up to her desk.

"What do you want, House?" said Cuddy in a voice that would have let anyone in the vicinity know that she wasn't in the mood to deal with his sarcastic teasing. House caught the edge of her tone but decided to poke fun at her anyway. Besides getting her mad was fun.

"If you're wallowing in self-loathing, I've got something that might help." He took out a bunch of papers from the inside of his blazer with a dramatic flourish. "We're getting sued," he said excitedly.

Stacy's jaw dropped. Shocked did not quite cover what she was feeling at that very moment. She turned to House. "You saved his life. He admitted that."

"We'll settle," Cuddy cut in, in a tired voice. Stacy turned to her, not surprised by her statement. Lisa looked as though she had given up. "He's got a stub where his hand used to be. We have insurance. Case seems pretty solid to me." She sighed, keeping her eyes on her desk.

"Ca-ching. The new American dream. Happy ending. Kid's going to be just fine." House dropped the papers on Cuddy's desk and started to limp towards the door. He caught sight of Stacy's face as he turned to leave. She was giving him that "I-told-you-to-give-her-a-break" look. He thought to ignore it, but found that he couldn't. He stopped, his hand hovering over the door handle. Cuddy couldn't be anything less than she was. He had to give her a break once in a while. She put up with him and all his crap everyday for eight years. She was there for him during the infarction and though he had forgiven her a long time ago, he knew that she had never forgiven herself. Besides, she didn't even know that he had forgiven her. He should tell her that one day, but now was definitely not the time. Especially since the woman he would never be able to forgive was still in the room. No, now was definitely not the time.

Without turning around, he said, "Cuddy." Turning slowly, he saw her look up from her desk and give him a questioning stare, her blue eyes locking on to his own. He walked slowly back to her desk. "Your guilt; It's perverse, and it makes you a crappy doctor." He paused. "It also makes you okay at what you do."

"You think a perverted sense of guilt makes me a good boss?" asked Cuddy, disbelievingly. His gaze was too intense, like he was looking into her soul. She wanted to look away but fought to keep her gaze level. She was not weak.

"Now would the world be a better place if people never felt guilty? Makes sex better." He points at Stacy with is cane. "Should have seen her in the last months of our relationship. Lots of guilt. Lots of screaming." Stacy made a face and Cuddy fought to keep the smile off her face. House continued. "I know this wasn't just because it was your roof. Cuddy…you see the world as it is and how it could be. What you don't see is what everyone else sees. The giant, gaping chasm in between."

Cuddy's head jerked up and she met his gaze. "House I'm not naïve. I realize-" replied Cuddy defensively, but House interrupted her before she could finish.

"If you did, you never would have hired me."

Cuddy didn't answer. She _couldn't_ answer. Not one comprehensible thought was running through her head at that very moment. She just sat there, stunned.

Taking her silence as permission, he continued. "You're not happy unless things are just right, which means two things. You're a good boss. And you'll never be happy." With that, he turned and walked towards the door for the second time.

"By the way," he said, looking over his shoulder, "Why does everyone think that you and I had sex? Think there could be something to it? I don't know." He shrugged and limped out the door, leaving Cuddy speechless and Stacy sitting there with one eyebrow raised, arms crossed over her chest. What they couldn't see as they watched House's receding back was the content smile that was splayed across his rugged features.

---- HOUSE M.D. ----

House walked back to his office thinking about what had just taken place in Cuddy's office. Everything he had said was true...including the sex thing… Most of the staff at PPTH thought that if they weren't currently sleeping together, they were lovers in the past. Well, he hadn't helped the situation much either, fueling the gossip fire with all his sexual comments. He smiled at the memory of one of his more recent antics.

_------_

_Cuddy ran down the stairs and spotted House making his way to the door, about to sign out with the nurse at the front desk. She ran down to catch him._

"_I want to run something by you," she said, breathless from running._

"_I will not have sex with you! Not again!" said House loudly. "Miserable, that first time. All that desperate, administrative need!"_

-----

House laughed inwardly. He remembered that day well. The lobby had been bustling that day with nurses and everyone knows that the nurses are the biggest gossip. It was set up and executed perfectly…but she hadn't even flinched. Her ability to mask her emotions was almost as great as his, but then again she did learn from the best. All those years of shameless banter. She only exploded if he specifically pushed her buttons and that was always fun. Some of the faces she made were just…sexy.

Of course he remembered that day. How could he forget it? That was the day when Cuddy informed him that Stacy was going to work at the hospital until Mark's rehab was finished…

House walked into his office to see Wilson sitting behind the desk…_his_ desk…in _his_ chair…

"What, are you going to start doing my paperwork too? Start seeing my patients? Well that might be good. You'll be able to save a couple of lives for once."

"Well you're in a good mood," replied Wilson, moving around to sit in a different chair. "I take it kissing Cuddy's ass went well?"

House took his rightful place behind his desk and picked up his yo-yo as he replayed what had just happened, conveniently leaving out the part about the sex at the end.

"Cuddy feels guilty about not diagnosing psittacosis," Wilson deduced.

"Think so?"

"There's no way she could have."

"No, no way she could have." House turned to look out the window. "It's raining," he said after a while.

---- HOUSE M.D. ----

Cuddy was still staring at the door long after House had left. People in the hospital think she's with House? I mean, sure, some of his comments are…suggestive, but she always thought that everyone _knew_ it was a joke. Guess not.

Had she thought about having a relationship with House? Of course she had. She couldn't deny that she was attracted to him. She had been attracted to him since she met him in Michigan. But was he attracted to her? There were times when she had felt the sudden urge to kiss him mid-banter. There were times when she thought _he_ was going to kiss her. But something always happened. Cameron interrupting their fighting with a new case or test results or him stopping just in time and spitting out some dirty remark and killing the moment… She'd had dreams about him too. About him kissing her…about him touching her…

Lisa blushed at where her thoughts were taking her and snapped out of her reverie. She looked at Stacy for the first time since House left and saw that she was staring at her.

"Well that was interesting," said Stacy, looking pointedly at Lisa.

"What? What House said? He always says things like that. He didn't mean any of it," said Lisa, trying to keep the sadness from her voice. The thought that House didn't care about her always bothered her. They had been friends for 20 years. When they left Michigan to establish their careers, they had tried to stay in touch but with him in California and her in New Jersey, especially being the head of the hospital, they soon fell apart. When she was finally able to get back in touch with him, he had told her that he was in town and they had set up a lunch date. That was when he told her that he had met Stacy. She remembered that she had been surprised that he had found someone because, considering his demeanor, she didn't think there was any other female on the planet besides herself and his mother that would be able to put up with him. She had told him that she was happy for him and she even invited them over for dinner. Stacy was nice enough and they became quick friends. That night during dinner, Greg had told her that he no longer had a job and would like to apply for one at her hospital. She was surprised and happy and she would be able to work with a friend. He and Stacy moved to a little townhouse about 8 miles from the hospital. Their friendship flourished. House even met James Wilson and was able to develop a great friendship with him. The four of them became especially close. It wasn't until much later that the infarction…

Cuddy cringed.

And then the infarction…whatever friendship they had had was over that day. He had made it perfectly clear that they now had a strictly professional relationship. He had felt betrayed by Stacy and herself and even though she knew that what they did saved his life, a bolt of guilt would shoot through her every time she saw him pop a pill of Vicodin or limp in pain when the medication was wearing off in between doses. She knew he would never forgive her and that was just something she would have to live with. "No, he didn't mean any of it." Cuddy repeated, shaking her head slightly in sadness.

"But that's where you're wrong," said Stacy. "He meant every word. After living with him for five years I think I'm capable of reading his tone and expression. He was serious."

"Well…what about what he said at the end?"

"About having sex with you? Of course that's true. Half the staff thinks that you guys are lovers. There are bets going and everything."

"Seriously?"

"Can you blame them? He's the only man they ever see you interact with on a regular basis. And you guys are always fighting. The younger doctors, like Cameron, might believe that you guys banter because you hate each other. But the older doctors know what they're seeing is the sexual tension mounting."

"Oh God. If they seriously think I'm sleeping with House I must really have no social life."

"Well, why don't you get one?"

"Um…because I'm a doctor and work 60 plus hours a week. I don't have time for a relationship. I have a hospital to run."

"But that doesn't mean that you don't have to have a love life. The hospital shouldn't stand in the way of you finding the love of your life."

"Okay. Well how do you propose I find, as you put it, the love of my life?"

"Well, do you have a professional preference? Like does it matter what he does for a living?"

"Not really. I just want someone who will understand what I do."

"So preferably a doctor?"

"I guess so."

"Okay. I know this great site called HotDoctors dot com. All you have to do is set up a profile and we'll see how many hits you get. If you don't want to wait for someone to find you, we can search for men by your preferences. Since you obviously need to get a life fast, we'll search for some guys. Here, let me see your computer and we'll set up an account for you." Stacy took a seat at Cuddy's computer and began setting up her profile. They entered all her personal information and began filling in her male preferences. "So what color hair?"

"Dark. Preferably brown."

"How tall?"

"Taller than me. Preferably 6-6'3," answered Cuddy in a dreamy voice.

Stacy was starting to get suspicious. "What kind of doctor?"

"Um…preferably not a nurse, plastic surgeon or gynecologist. Now, a regular surgeon, diagnostician…all fine."

_Ah-ha! _Stacy thought, keeping in her grin."Um, Lisa?"

"Hmmm…?"

"Your dream man is starting to sound a lot like someone I know…"

"Really? That's great! Who?"

"House."


	2. Chapter 2

**Ok guys! Here's the second chapter! I hope you enjoy it! OMG…thanks for all the reviews!**

_**Bedbugz – Thank you so much for being my beta! Much love!**_

_**JenniferButterfly – I got your message…thank you so much for the tips! I took them to heart and made some corrections here and there in the first chappie so you should check it back again and see! I really appreciate you looking out for me! Much love.**_

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_**Charlie Winchester – My favorite back-up beta…lol jk. I'm sorry about the cliffhanger! But I still love talking to you online! When I update chapter 3 it will make it all better ok?**_

_**Dcloverz – Hey hommie! Much love to you! Thanks for reviewing!**_

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_**Mj0621 – So glad you liked it!**_

CHAPTER 2

After waiting for almost ten minutes for House to say something other than that it's raining outside, Wilson was starting to get suspicious. House was brooding. He doesn't usually do that with other people in the room so something was definitely going on. He knew House better than anyone…well maybe not as well as Stacy…or his mom. But he was definitely a close third. There was something that House wasn't telling him and he was going to find out.

"What the hell did you do?"

House turned to look at Wilson. "What do you mean what did I do? Why do I always get blamed for something that happens?" House said with a childish pout.

"Because you're juvenile and it's usually your fault. So what else happened that you're not telling me? Considering the fact that you just came back from Cuddy's office, I'd say the person you harassed was her."

"How do you know it wasn't the nurse in the hallway that I harassed?"

"I wouldn't put it past you. But harassing a nurse doesn't usually cause you to brood. And that was totally what you were doing."

"I'm not brooding!" House said indignantly.

"Staring out the window, talking about the _weather_? That is most definitely the definition of brooding."

"No it isn't. The definition of brooding is to sit on and hatch eggs. I don't see any eggs coming out of my ass." Wilson looked at him in mild amusement. "Don't worry, I looked it up."

"You know very well what definition I'm talking about. I know you're brooding because you _never_ talk about the weather. At least not in civilized conversation…"

House sighed. "Fine, so what if I harassed Cuddy? I always do. Why should today matter any more than yesterday?"

"Well, it really depends on what you said to her exactly," said Wilson, slightly dreading what he was going to hear.

House dropped his eyes to avoid Wilson's steady stare. "I told her that everyone in the hospital thinks we had sex."

Wilson looked surprised. "Well that shouldn't have surprised her. What with all the sexual comments you make about her cleavage even she isn't that dense to miss the fact that everyone…why are you looking at me like that?"

House just raised an eyebrow. Wilson's eyes grew wide with realization and his jaw dropped open.

"Are you…serious?"

"Yep," answered House as he twirled his cane.

"You mean she didn't-"

"Yep."

"About you and-"

"Yep."

Wilson was silent for a moment. "Wow."

"Yeah."

"So what have you deduced oh great and wise diagnostician?"

"That Cuddy's really as dense as she seems."

"But she doesn't seem dense at all."

"That's the problem."

"Does she know about the bets?"

"If she didn't know about the rumor, do you think she knew about the bets?" asked House pointedly.

"Oh."

"Yeah. Besides, Stacy was there. She probably already informed her about them."

Wilson was silent for a moment. He knew what he wanted to ask, but he just wasn't sure he should. Then again, this moment might not every arise again. Wilson took a deep breath. "House?"

"What?"

"Do-you-like-Cuddy?" Wilson asked without pausing.

House looked at Wilson with an unreadable expression on his face. "What?"

Wilson took a deep breath and forced himself to look House in the eye. "Do you have any feelings for Cuddy?"

"Of course I do. It just depends on what she's wearing that day." He wiggled his eyebrows suggestively.

"That's not what I meant and you know it," Wilson said with a look of disgust. "Do you care about her?"

"Well of course. And you do too so I don't know where you're going with this pointless conversation."

Wilson sighed. "You're beating around the bush and avoiding the question with dirty jokes. Just answer the question."

"Well if you had asked a question, Jimmy boy, I would have-"

"Are you attracted to Cuddy?" Wilson interrupted, "Would you take her out on a date if you got the chance?" He looked pointedly at House, his eyes never leaving his face.

----HOUSE M.D. ----

"H-H-House?" stammered Lisa, trying to fight the blush that was rising in her face.

"Lisa…are you harboring feelings for our favorite diagnostician?" asked Stacy, as if she were talking to a three-year-old.

"What? Of course not!" Lisa said quickly…too quickly. Stacy raised an eyebrow in disbelief. "Seriously. I'll admit, my ideal man has similar _features_ to House. But I've preferred the tall, dark-haired ones since I was in the 9th grade. It's just a mere coincidence," said Lisa, trying to make light of the situation.

Stacy let out the breath she didn't know she had been holding. "All right," she said hesitantly. "I believe you. Well then…come on. There has to be at least one nice doctor here that will suit your fancy."

_Oh my God_, thought Cuddy, as she watched the screen over Stacy's shoulder only half paying attention. Stacy was the last person she wanted to know about her secret affections for Greg House. I mean, she was his ex-girlfriend for crying out loud. So sure, she's married but Lisa had a strange feeling that Stacy still had feelings for House. _God, what a nightmare_.

Lisa sat back in her chair and rubbed her eyes with the heels of her hands. She could feel a headache coming on. It was going to be another late night considering all the paper work she was going to have to finish before tomorrow afternoon. She had hoped to make it home early and make a nice, _healthy _dinner, considering the fact that for the last three nights she had survived on vending machine chips, candy, and whatever special the cafeteria was making. And she was pretty sure it all went to her ass. House had been ogling it a lot lately and now she knew why. Lisa smiled to herself as she reminisced about House. She was jolted from her thoughts by an excited squeal.

"Hey! This one looks perfect for you. Here, listen to this: 6'2 ½, brown-haired male doctor. Looking for lady doctor, between the ages of 18 and 27-"

"No."

"What do you mean no? You didn't even let me finish."

"Stacy, he wants a woman between the ages of 18 and 27."

"Okay, okay. So you're 31. That's pretty damn close to 27."

"Stacy, I'm 39."

"Oh."

----HOUSE M.D. ----

House just looked at Wilson. He had known the whole time what Wilson had meant. He just loved to get him flustered. But to answer his question…

He had thought about Cuddy…well he thought more about her low cut tops…the way the tops of her breasts rose and fell with each breath she took, especially when she was angry with him. Then her walk would also have a little…something more. Sometimes he would purposely make her angry just so she would stomp out of his office, her ass swinging in a completely appetizing manner. During some of their arguments, their faces would be so close together that he'd suddenly get the urge to capture her red lips with his own and have his way with her right there, whether it be his office or the clinic.

So in answer to Wilson's questions…yes he had definitely thought about Lisa Cuddy. Whether he would ever ask her out…he doubted it. Maybe he would if he knew she liked him…Did she like him? He wouldn't mind going out with her…she was someone he could trust. He couldn't be with someone he couldn't trust…or didn't like for that matter. Like Cameron. He grimaced. He had made the mistake of going on a date with Cameron once and the all she wanted to do was talk about his feelings. He hated talking about his feelings. He shivered in disgust.

But Cuddy…he knew he could trust Cuddy. And she did like him, well like him enough to give up $100 million to save his job. So yeah she definitely liked him…but did she _like_ him like him?

Wilson cleared his throat and House snapped to attention. "Are you just going to ignore me?" asked Wilson a bit annoyed.

"That was the plan Jimmy boy. You catch on rather quick."

Wilson rolled his eyes. "So I think I've got my answer then. "

"Sure. Think whatever you want. But you're wrong. Cuddy is most definitely a D-cup."

"Thank you for that little bit of information, I really needed to know that. Now I can move on with my life."

"I really hope you do and stay out of mine."

"You like Cuddy don't you?"

"No I don't. She's the devil."

"Sure she is," said Wilson pointedly looking at House.

"I don't like her."

"Really? Then prove it, you stubborn jackass."

"Hey! Words hurt you know!"

"House!"

"Wilson!"

Wilson took a deep breath. "I'm just going to tell you. You don't have a chance with her anyway. She's too high strung. She would expect you to change, and I know better than most that you aren't planning on changing anytime soon." House just looked at him. "You know what you need?" asked Wilson suddenly.

"I don't really care but I'm sure you're going to tell me anyway."

"You need to go out on a date."

"Thanks Jimmy, but I don't swing that way. Well maybe if you promise to wear your pocket protector. It makes you look so-"

"No-"

"I was going to say delicious."

"I mean a real date-with a woman, with someone who you actually might want to get to know and have a real relationship with, not a date as part of a deal."

"Thanks but I don't want to go back on the dating scene. I'm through with these skinny blonde chicks who only want me for my sexy bod."

"You can look online. There's a great site called HotDoctors dot com."

House's jaw dropped open. "You want me to try online dating?" he asked incredulously.

"Yep."

"I'm not _that_ desperate!"

"Yes you are. Now just try it. You might find someone that actually interests you."

"Wilson! I'm not going to stoop so low as to find babes on the internet. The only thing the internet is good for is porn and even that is getting difficult to find these days."

"Just check it out."

"Hell no! Only emotionally insecure people like Cuddy would put themselves up there hoping for hits."

"Then it's perfect for you. Just try it, damn you!" And with that, Wilson stomped out of the office, leaving House to think about what just happened.

----HOUSE M.D. ----

It was 11 pm and Stacy was still clicking away at the computer. Lisa had moved from sitting behind Stacy to lying down on the couch. She was exhausted and had work to do, but Stacy had insisted that she was staying until she found at least one decent guy. That was taking longer than she thought it would. Especially since every time she thought she found someone, Lisa would shoot her down with something like, "What kind of requirement is 'big breasts'?" or "Too old and he sounds like an asshole." Once she even said, "That man isn't looking for a relationship. He's looking for a mistress. HE'S MARRIED for crying out loud."

Cuddy's patience was wearing thin. She really wasn't in the mood for this right now. She was so tired. Gradually Cuddy let her eyes droop and was on the brink of sleep when she was awoken by Stacy shaking her.

Cuddy jumped up. "Oh my God Stacy! What's the matter with you?"

"I found the perfect guy! Listen to this: Brown hair, 6'1, neurosurgeon, 39. Looking for female doctor between the ages of 37 and 41, preferably shorter than 6'0, who enjoys reading, biking, and skiing."

"Um…wow…he sounds almost…decent," said Lisa, already half asleep.

"Yeah, I know. He sounds perfect for you. So what do you say?"

"Yeah just do it. Whatever. Just let me sleep," said Lisa, dismissing Stacy with a quick gesture she had perfected from years of being head of the hospital.

Stacy smiled and quietly left Lisa's office, but not before leaving her the details for the date she had set up with the man only known as 'The Sex God'.


	3. Chapter 3

Hey guys! Here's the third chapter! Thank you for all the awesomely awesomely awesome reviews! I'm sorry this chapter is so short, but when I wrote it out, chapter 4 was attached to this and I decided to split it in half. So chapter 4 should be coming out soon ok? Enjoy!

**Review replies:**

**Sinister scribe – Of course this is going to be hopelessly romantic and also drama filled! Much love.**

**FoxyWombat – Thank you so much! Glad you enjoyed it!**

**Thyla – Thank you so much for adding me to your follow-up list! That makes me feel so happy inside! I promise to update at least once a week, hopefully, if my homework load is reasonable ok? Much love.**

**Eleanor J – Cha I would shoot Stacy too if she did that, well if she did in real life…God what was she thinking? We'll find out what was running through her head in Chapter 4…Promise! hugs**

**Samanthaon – They are so in denial! I love the will-he-wont-he sexual tension, so you know this fic will be chock full of it!**

**Eac-dudette – Unfortunately if I tell you who the Sex God is, I would ruin the story wouldn't I? So you just have to read to find out! Promise you'll find out soon , though! Thanks for adding me to your favs by t he way! That made me feel sooo special!**

**The Madhatter2 – I was a bit worried that Wilson would sound too gay or something. I was concerned that they wouldn't really be in character so I'm glad they are! Thanks for the support! Much love!**

**Sparvoega – Masterpiece? Next to some of the fanfics I've read on this site, I would hardly call this a masterpiece…But OMG that you think so highly of it makes me feel very VERY ACCOMPLISHED! THANK YOU SO MUCH!**

**RougeButterfly – I'm glad you enjoyed it! I'm trying to make these chapters as funny was possibly possible because I do have a difficult time with some of the one liners, especially from House because I just haven't been gifted with the sarcastic funny bone as House was. Much love.**

**Crazy-chicken-79 – Ok, with Cuddy's screen name…I purposely haven't mentioned what it was because that will be mentioned later on…Promise…It will add a little…something to the story later…I'm glad you liked this…I'm sooo happy that it's being so well received! Much love.**

**Ibreak4CSI – Thank you so much! You'll just have to read to find out who the Sex God is…wink**

**JenniferButterfly – Thank you so much for your help so far! Your comments help me so much!**

**LindafromItaly – Are you really from Italy? That is sooo awesome! And thank you so much for your review! I'm glad you like it!**

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**Dcloverz – Your review was long and awesome! Thanks! Like I'm so glad that you left a long review even though you talked to me about it too! That made me feel really special! Love you soooo much! hugs**

**Kris the fanficaholic – Glad you liked it! Hope you enjoyed the second chapter too!**

**Schokolade - Thank you! I love your reviews! I really do! Oh and you totally have to update soon! I read chapter 3 but that wasn't enough! Ahhhh! If you update again, I will update again! Lol…much love!**

CHAPTER 3

House had gone home soon after Wilson's outburst with a lot of food for thought. Online dating? Seriously? He was definitely not doing that. So let's crumple up that idea and throw it away into the trash can of "Wilson's Brilliant Plans". He was finished with relationships. He had bared his soul once and was crushed so badly he hadn't even been able to pick up the pieces. If Wilson hadn't been there, those pieces would still be lying on the floor of his apartment, ready to be trampled by unsuspecting feet.

House poured himself a scotch and sat on the piano bench of his baby grand. He hadn't played in over a week because of the last case and hadn't realized that he'd missed it so much. He put his glass down, cracked his knuckles, positioned his figures over the keys and—

His phone rang.

House turned to glare at the stupid invention and cursed Alexander Graham Bell to hell and back for ever inventing it. He sat there staring that the black and white keys of the piano as he waited for the answering machine to pick it up.

"I'm sorry, but this number has been disconnected. Of course if you don't believe me, you can leave a message…just don't expect anyone to call back. You know, you better just hang up right now…come on. I'll count down with you…3…2…1…" BEEP.

"House if you're there, pick up. House, I know you're there." It was Wilson. What the hell did he want at this hour? House looked at his watch. It was nearly midnight.

"Come on House. It's nearly midnight. You must be curious as to why I'm calling"

House flipped off the machine.

"Come on House…and don't just sit there and flip me off…3…2…1…"

House grabbed the phone. "Someone better be dying or you will be," he snarled.

"Yeah I'm fine. How are you?"

"You called me to see how I was? Wow. And I thought this was important," said House sardonically.

"I wanted to know whether you checked out the site."

"No," replied House without missing a beat, "and I don't plan to. Unlike you and Cuddy, I'm not desperate. By the way, is this the website you used to find your first three wives? How's Mrs. Wilson Number Three? What's her name again? Judy? How is she?

Wilson ground his teeth in an effort to stay calm. He knew House was just trying to get a rise out of him. "Her name is Julie and we're in the middle of processing our divorce papers," Wilson said with a sigh. "But this isn't about me. This is about you. _You_ need to find someone."

"Wilson, I really don't want to talk about this right now."

"Well I figured—"

"Well you figured wrong!" House exploded into the phone, banging his fist on the keys of his piano, emphasizing his point. "I thought I found someone once right? Remember that? Look how great that turned out! She left and I turned into a drunken mess. I don't want to have to deal with that again all right?"

Wilson was silent for a moment. "All right House. All right, I get it. If you change your mind, I found this woman that I thought might interest you." When House didn't answer, Wilson continued, "I took it upon myself to find someone on the off chance you changed your mind. I figured you would make me look for you in the end anyway, so why not just save time and do it _before _you black mail me into doing it and your clinic hours."

"Great. Well don't expect my call anytime soon." And with that, House hung up the phone.

_Wow_, he thought as he sank into the nearest arm chair and took a sip of his scotch. He didn't want to start dating again. It was just that simple. He was never really good at it either. It was only by sheer happenstance that he met Stacy in a strip club in the first place. Stacy…that was a can of worms he hadn't thought would have opened so soon. Sure she'd been working at the hospital and he saw her almost everyday but somehow…somehow he had managed to ignore their previous relationship…

_Well…until now that is…_God this was turning out to be a bigger problem than he thought it was…He was over Stacy…wasn't he? He liked Cuddy now, right?

House downed what was left of his scotch. _Shit_. This was going to be really complicated…He still had feelings for his ex-girlfriend….who was married…and seems to have no intentions with him…well…actually that's not true…She had been following him around lately…Maybe she did love him still…he was "the guy" after all.

_House was standing in his office staring out the window at the rain that had just begun to pour. Mark had just started his treatment and would be fine after some intense physiotherapy. And as soon as that was done, he would leave…and Stacy would go with him…back to Short Hills…Fantastic._

_He turned toward his desk and began flipping through a magazine that had been left on his desk. He looked up as he heard his office door opening and was more surprised than he looked at who it was. Stacy slowly approached him._

"_You fixed him," she said with a smile, as she walked toward his desk._

"_De nada," he replied shrugging. He didn't want anymore gratitude, especially from her._

"_Thank you." She paused for a moment and then sighed. "You were right."_

"_He's gonna be fine."_

"_No, about me…I'm not over you." She smiled. "You were…you were the one. You always will be." The smile faded from her face. "But I can't be with you."_

_House looked away from her face for a moment to stare at the floor slightly puzzled. "So I'm 'the guy'…but you want the other guy, who by definition can never be 'the guy'". He just felt the need to clarify that._

_She chuckled. "What so great about you is you always think you're right. What's so frustrating about you is you _are_ right so much of the time." She took a breath. "You are…brilliant…funny…surprising…sexy." She paused. "But with you I was lonely and with Mark there's room for me."_

_House looked a bit like a deer caught in headlights, but quickly covers up his surprise. "Ok," he mumbles and nods his head in an understanding manner._

_Stacy looked him right in the eye for a moment before stepping right up close to him and kissed him on the cheek. She lingered there for a moment, rubbing her forehead with his before drawing away. His eyes were closed long after her lips had left his skin, trying to commit this feeling to memory. He opened his eyes and looks at Stacy._

_They stared into each other's eyes for one last moment before Stacy turned around and walked out of his office. She didn't look back once._

Shit. He did still love her. Damn it. Maybe he didn't love Cuddy after all. God damn it. Why did love have to be so complicated?

Before pondering this, he was going to need a whole lot more alcohol. House limped into his kitchen and poured himself some scotch, downed it, and poured another glass. He was quite possibly falling for both the prominent females in his life. Wilson was probably right. He should probably get out more. Maybe widen his selection a bit….Or maybe all the alcohol was going to his head.

_Yeah definitely the alcohol_, he thought as he grabbed the phone and hit the speed dial button on his phone.

"Wilson."

"She better have nice funbags."

**--------------------------------------------------**

**So again, I'm sorry it was short, but I promise the next one will be a bit longer! And I know…I didn't put anything about Cuddy in this chapter…but there will be lots of her in the next chapter! Promise! Keep the reviews coming please! They really make my day! It's like air for me…or Vicodin for House! Oh yeah I can see how many of you put me and my story on your alert lists! Thank you soooo much! But some of you haven't reviewed! T.T Please review! I will love you forever and as JauntyChick would say, I will give you lots of cookies! )**


	4. Chapter 4

**Sorry it took so long! Here it is my friends! I just want to thank everyone for the awesome reviews and for adding it to their alert lists! Seeing that really makes me so happy!!! Here are all the cookies I promised you!!!! throws cookies randomly throughout entire site Much love to all you! Now here's the Cuddyness that you all were waiting for!**

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**Fernpaw – Yeah I knew what the answering machine was, but I didn't want to use everything from the eppie you know? But yeah I love his answering machine from the eppie! It was so hysterical!**

**Bedbugz – No worries! Because you're my beta and I will love you no matter what… ) Thanks for the fantabulous support!**

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**Ok guys…on with the story!!!!!**

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CHAPTER 4

Cuddy awoke with sunlight shining on her face. She slowly opened her eyes and took in her surroundings. Since when did she have a huge desk in her bedroom? She closed her eyes and groaned in realization. She had slept in her office…_again_. She had to stop doing this. What was the point of having a real house if she never used it?

She stretched slightly and heard a crackle. Cuddy looked down and saw a piece of paper taped on to her torso.

_Friday night. 8:00 pm. At Amour's-Have fun._

Cuddy stared at the note in confusion. She read and reread it just in case she missed something but found that it said nothing more. She checked the back and realized that there was something on it. She proceeded to scan the page. It was a profile of a man printed off of Suddenly everything that happened the night before came rushing back to her.

Stacy had set her up with some random guy named…God she didn't even know his name. Cuddy scanned the page again but was only able to find his screen name. The Sex God? Cuddy sat straight up and her eyes bugged out of her head. What the hell was Stacy thinking? Oh God…was she high when she agreed to this? Shit. When was this? She flipped the page back over.

Friday. _Seriously?_ Shit. That was tomorrow. Cuddy closed her eyes and groaned as she flopped back against the cushions of her couch.

"You really should wear something that covers the twins a little better. I'm packing more wood here than just this cane if you catch my drift."

----HOUSE M.D. -----

House had been sitting there just staring at Cuddy for about a half an hour before she even began to stir. He took in everything about her. Her facial features were set in a serene expression and her hair, a chocolate brown mass of curls, framed her face contrasting perfectly with her creamy skin. He took note that her clothes were in disarray, indicating that she had been tossing and turning all night. Her skirt had ridden up exposing most of her right thigh and just the edge of black lace from her underwear. Her shirt had dropped low as well, leaving little to the imagination. _Well, that's what happens, Dr. Cuddy, when you wear low cut tops to bed_.

When she finally began to awaken, he watched to see whether she noticed him. Cuddy seemed perfectly content, stretching and sighing, until she realized there was a paper taped to her stomach. House had noticed the paper when he walked in but didn't want to touch her in case the slight pressure from his fingers woke her up.

He watched as she scanned the paper and saw flashes of confusion and concern flicker across her face in quick succession. However, when she flipped the paper over, it seemed that realization had struck. She seemed to be in shock until she double-checked the back of the paper. Her face quickly contorted into a look of sheer horror and she groaned and flopped back on the couch, burying her head amongst the cushions.

When she had lifted up the paper, he could see that it was a note and that someone had written "Friday. 8:00 pm. At Amour's-Have fun." _So Dr. Cuddy has a hot date on Friday night._ And it seemed from her look of horror she hadn't even known about it…_Oh snap. Someone set her up!_ House grinned and tucked that little nugget of information away for later ridicule.

It seemed that she wasn't going to see him anytime soon, so now was as good a time as any to make his presence known.

"You really should wear something that covers up the twins a little better. I'm packing more wood here than just this cane if you catch my drift."

House smiled as he watched Cuddy jump out of her skin at the unexpected sound of his voice. Her head jerked up as she tried to locate him and found him sitting behind her desk with his feet propped up on it. He pointedly stared at her chest and gave her the once over. Now that she was sitting up, he could see that her hair had come out of its clasp, causing it to spill down her back and over he shoulders. Cuddy, following his gaze, saw that her clothes were in disarray and, scowling at him, she quickly adjusted her shirt and skirt to make herself look a bit more decent.

"You look like you just got some. Anyone walking in here at this very moment would probably assume that we just did something very naughty right here, but you're lacking the swollen, red lips and the large purple love bites everywhere. I could fix that for you in a matter of seconds."

Cuddy nearly fell off the couch in surprise at his offer. As much as she wanted to, she knew that he was kidding. Well he _was_ kidding right? "In your dreams," said Cuddy with a roll of her eyes. Yeah, he was definitely kidding.

"Well the offer still stands," he said with a suggestive waggle of his eyebrows.

"How long have you been sitting there?"

"Long enough to know that you have a hot date on Friday night."

"Oh God," said Cuddy, suddenly looking sick. He was the _last_ person she wanted knowing about this. Suddenly it hit her. If House was already at work, then what time was it? She looked around, frantically trying to find her clock. House took the hint.

"It's nearly 12:30." He knew her too well.

She screeched. "Oh my God! Why the hell didn't you wake me up? I had a board meeting at 10:00!" She quickly jumped up and started bustling around her office. Opening up a cabinet, she pulled out one of her spare power suits and some toiletries. She threw everything on her desk, locked the door and pulled the blinds across it before pulling off her shirt. It wasn't until then did she realize that House was still there. She quickly spun around, giving him the perfect view of her lace-clad breasts. He didn't let her down. He was completely mesmerized by her chest, his gaze not once leaving it. "When were you planning on telling me that you were still here?"

"Well, you looked so busy; I just didn't want to bother you." He gaze was _still_ on her chest.

She grabbed her shirt and held it in front of her, breaking House's concentration. He let out an unhappy groan. "Well you can just get out right NOW!"

"No. I need to talk to you," he said with a little pout, "I've been waiting forever for you to wake up!"

"House! Now is not the time! I've got a ton of things to do because _someone_ let me sleep!" she screeched.

House lowered his gaze and looked at the floor. "You needed it. Those robots on the board could have waited. This last case took quite a toll on you. So I thought that you should get as much sleep as possible. You were getting cranky."

Cuddy was thrown completely off-guard by the sincerity of his comment. Her face softened. "I-I just-"

Oh God, she's feeling guilty. '_Well we can't have that, can we?' _thought House. "Of course, I would be cranky too if I hadn't had any _real_ sex for months."

Cuddy's anger came back at light-speed, as did the flush in her cheeks. Her face hardened and she threw him her famous death glare. House grinned. _That's my girl._

"House." Her voice was all House needed to know that Cuddy's anger level was at the 'dangerously-close-to-beating-you-over-the-head-with-your-cane' level. "Get out of my office…NOW!" She pointed towards the door.

"But I need to talk to you," whined House like a five-year-old.

"Wasn't that what we were just doing?" said Cuddy sarcastically.

"No, I need to know…" House suddenly looked really uncomfortable.

"What?" asked Cuddy impatiently. She was starting to get cold.

"I need to be let off early from work tomorrow."

"You have clinic duty tomorrow before your work day ends."

"Don't you think I know that?"

"House, you're not getting out of clinic duty."

"Why not? It's completely pointless. Anybody could diagnose these people. A monkey could do it. All he'd need it's a bottle of Motrin and– "

"You seem to have forgotten that I've already heard this speech. It didn't work before and it won't work again."

"Come on. Please?"

"No."

"Pretty, _pretty_ please?"

"No." Cuddy was starting to get annoyed. She was also shivering.

"Pretty, pretty, _pretty _please with sugar on top and ice cream and the Radio City Rockets?"

"House! You're-"

"Sexy?" House offered.

"Infuriating! You know, this is a waste of time. Just please leave so I can change and get on with the day!" House stayed put. "Fine you know…God, why do I even bother." He raised an eyebrow. She put her shirt back over her head. "I'm going to change in the ladies room. When I get back, you better not be here." With that, she grabbed her clothes and make-up bag from the desk and stormed out of her office.

---- HOUSE M.D. ----

She had to stop letting him get to her so easily. Her blood pressure was probably off the charts. He just _loved_ getting a rise out of her. She knew it was true. He did point it out once.

_-----_

_Cuddy, House and his lackeys were all in the conference room, discussing Alfredo's latest symptoms. House was at the white board and Cuddy was observing near by. Their latest round of treatment wasn't working. Cuddy was getting nervous._

"_We need something stronger than Heparin. Human-activated protein C..." Cuddy knew this was a risk, but it was one they were going to have to take._

"_Looks like Cuddy. Same cleavage," said House, looking pointedly at her chest. "Protein C is indicated for only severe sepsis."_

"_Well how many of his limbs have to be at stake for it to be severe?" countered Cuddy._

"_But this stuff is crazy dangerous. It can cause internal bleeding. If he bleeds, he could stroke. He could die," replied House with mock concern._

"_He could get better." Everything House said was true. She knew the risks. She did go to med-school. There just wasn't anything else they could do. The ducklings, for once, just sat there watching the exchange._

_House slowly approached Cuddy. "You know, if I tried a scheme like this, you'd give me that nasty, wrinkly face and screech like a hyena." He crept closer to her, until he was barely a foot away, his face right in front of hers. She could feel his breath on her lips. "It's very sexy, I admit."_

_She was speechless for about two seconds, her face betraying her shock. She quickly composed herself, but not before House saw it. Damn him for being hyper observant. She looked him in the eye, hoping to look more composed than she felt, and thought she saw a glimmer of desire flicker across his icy blue eyes. She blinked and it was gone, a satisfied smirk splayed across his face. Cuddy took a deep breath to steady her rapidly beating heart and stepped away from him._

"_Do it," was all she said before making a steady exit. She couldn't help but think, as she made her way to the elevators, that if his ducklings hadn't been there, he would have kissed her._

-----

Cuddy changed into her low cut power suit and after washing her face, brushing her teeth, applying a fresh coat of make-up and fixing her hair, she took one last look in the mirror and walked out of the ladies room. That memory had put her in a surprisingly good mood and knowing that she wouldn't have to see House until his clinic duty started was enough to put a little bounce in her step. The smile on her face quickly faded upon walking into her office, however. House was still sitting there, behind her desk, with his feet propped up on her notes. He hadn't even made an attempt to move.

He smiled and glanced at her new low cut top. "Great blouse, but I preferred it when you looked like we just did the nasty on your office floor." He saw the expression on her face and immediately knew what her question was going to be, so as she opened her mouth he answered it. "I told you I needed to be let out of work early tomorrow."

"Why? You just want to get out of doing clinic duty."

"Well…that's just one of the perks. I…uh…" he sputtered. "I'm going out for dinner."

"You want to get out of clinic duty so you can go have drinks with Wilson?" asked Cuddy incredulously, "I don't think so."

"Not with Wilson. I may be easy to please, but I would never stoop so low as to do Wilson. I don't swing that way."

"So if you're not going drinking with Wilson, then who are you meeting?" House just raised his eyebrows in answer to her question. Cuddy's eyes widened in realization- "You mean you're going out to dinner…on a _date_?" House nodded solemnly. Cuddy felt an odd pang of disappointment and jealously run through her like white, hot fire. What could she do if he wanted to start dating again?

House interrupted her thoughts. "I just wanted to leave a little early to get ready. I…haven't done this in a while." He sighed and got up from his seat. He came and stood right in front of her.

"Well…that's…that's great." She cursed inwardly at the unsteadiness of her voice.

"Cuddy…"

"No really. I'm happy that you're getting back out there. After your last relationship, I'm just glad you don't feel the need to pity yourself any longer. Five years was long enough. You should find someone you can trust."

"So…about clinic duty…"

"Yeah, you can leave early. I'll have one of the other doctors work your shift." She wiped the sadness from her eyes and patted his arm. "I hope you have fun." He stared at her face for a moment longer, studying her facial expression. When he didn't move away from her, she looked up and saw him staring at her. She quickly looked away, trying to mask her sadness.

He sighed. "Um…thanks." He limped toward the door and was gone.

**So there you go! There's all the Cuddyness and the Huddyness that was missing from the last chapter! I hope to update soon! Keep those reviews coming!! They really motivate me to update at least once a week because I don't want to lose anyone you know? Much love guys!**


	5. Chapter 5

**Ok you guys! I'm sorry I kept you waiting for so long! School has been so hectic and I haven't been able to even look at my story until this weekend. So here is the fifth chapter! Hope you enjoy and am not _too_ mad at me for making you wait…sorry! hugs Much love you guys!**

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**Eac-dudette** – Thank you so much!!!! I'm glad you think that I'm a good writer…because I don't really think that I'm as good as some of the other Huddy writers…I don't know…But I'm soooooo glad that you like this!!!! Much love.

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**ScarlettScribble** – Hmm…I wonder…See…I _want_ to tell you wants going to happen, but I can't because then that would just ruin the story!!!! You'll just have to read it to find out…Woo…the anticipation is killing me..cough…I mean killing you guys… _I _know what's going to happen!!!! LOL

**Buba** – Great name! Lol, I'm so happy that you like it!! Oh and I'm glad that it sounds like House because I find that to be the hardest part to write…It's really difficult to keep the characters in character you know? So when people review and tell me that they sound in character, it makes me feel so accomplished! Hope you enjoy this chapter and stick with me to the end!

**Eleanor J.** – You know, the idea of House watching Cuddy nap just came to me…I don't remember when…but as I was writing the scene I thought that it would go perfectly and start up the conflict that we all love so much you know? I LOVE DRAMA!!! LOL…I'm glad you like it because I love all of your writing and to know that you like mine makes me feel so accomplished and…_special_…or happy on the inside!!!! I love it! I hope you enjoy this chapter! Much love.

**Dcloverz** – OK!!!! I'm including you!!! OK??? GOD…lol…They talked about Ali in your English class? And yes, before you ask, the stalker girl has a name! LOL! Yeah hope you like this chapter! I changed it up a bit from the last time you read it! Much love my Sprouse Hommie! Much love!

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**Omygoth** – Cuddylicious? Isn't that a great word? Love it! Hope you enjoy this chapter!!!

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**JauntyChick** – Glad you liked that chapter!!! Ooo!!! I want cookies!!! Please still give me cookies!!! Here's the update for you!!! Much love.

**Isabel Juno** – LOL! Glad you liked this!!! Here's the update I told you about! Much love.

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CHAPTER 5

Cuddy heard the door close but didn't see it, for her vision clouded with unwanted tears. She sank down into her now unoccupied seat.

It was still warm.

She put her head in her hands. Why was she _crying_? This was stupid. _He can date whoever the hell he wants._ Why should it concern her? She quickly wiped the two lone tears on her cheeks and dried her eyes. "Damn it," she whispered as she the black color from her mascara stained her fingers. She grabbed her make-up kit and quickly hurried from her office to do a quick touch-up. She had to look presentable when she apologized to the board for missing the meeting. She sighed and briskly left her office.

---- HOUSE M.D. ----

As he walked out of her office, the only thing running through Greg House's mind was the fact that there had been sadness in her eyes when she had deduced that it wasn't _just_ dinner but an actual date. _Sadness?_ That couldn't have been sadness.

Just to make sure, he stopped outside and turned back to look at her through the office doors. Thank God they were made out of glass. If she had looked up, just once, she would have seen him standing there. But she didn't. He saw her put her head in her hands and just sit there, not moving. She got up moments later, wiping her cheeks and eyes and he saw her curse. When she moved to grab her make up bag, he knew he'd seen enough.

He also knew that if he didn't get out of there right then, she would see him and he didn't want to arouse her suspicion anymore than it probably already was.

He quickly limped towards the elevators and began to repeatedly hit the button to close the doors. Just as the doors were rolling shut, he heard a yell and a crash and looked up to see Cuddy on the floor, having run into one of the poor nurses who had been carrying a stack of files. The papers were every where. He saw Cuddy get up and look into the elevators and her eyes were drawn to his. He could see the mascara stains on her cheeks. Her gaze was broken when the elevators doors finally slid closed.

House turned around and leaned his forehead on the cool metal of the elevator walls and let out a breath he hadn't realized he'd been holding.

_Yep. Definitely sadness_._ Shit._

_Way to make my life even more complicated Cuddy_. He inwardly cursed his ability of being hyper-observant. It always came in handy when he was solving his cases, like when he figured out that that death-row inmate…what was his name? Chris? Clancy? Whatever, but the point is that he figured out that he had a pheochromocytoma, and he figured out that Rico was playing kissy-face with roosters. He was good…pretty darn good…

But he always hated that he could tell what people were _really_ feeling, especially when they were lying. Sure, it came in handy sometimes. He was always able to tell when Stacy was miserable by examining her eyes…and by counting how many cigarette trips she made. But that wasn't the point.

_God, this sucks._

House began banging his head on the elevator wall over and over again, oblivious to the elevators doors opening behind him.

"Bad day?"

House stopped mid-bang and turned around. He saw Wilson standing there with his hands on his waist.

"It is now," House said, as he stepped out of the elevator.

---- HOUSE M.D. ----

Cuddy washed her face and applied a fresh coat of makeup. When she was finished, she briskly left the bathroom and sprinted to her office. She looked into her full length mirror to do an "outfit check." Her power suit today consisted of a warm gray skirt and top, low cut of course. House always made fun of her for that, but she thought it was sensible to use her feminine wiles to her advantage. People underestimated women in power and she didn't want _anyone_ doubting her abilities as _the boss_.

Her skirt hugged her hips in an alluring way, but was not slutty in the least. She turned side-ways and examined her behind. She never really understood men and their obsession with her behind. Men she didn't even know sometimes made random, inappropriate comments to her like she was a common whore. Though she did get a bit grossed out when older men said these things, when young men (younger than her of course) turned their heads when she walked by…it made her feel like a woman should feel.

Even House admired it. For the longest time she had thought she had been imagining things when, after a heated argument, she would see him stare at her ass as she was walking away. But he did. He would cock his head to one side and stare until she had turned to corner. She wasn't_ completely_ positive until she decided to try a little experiment.

After an especially heated argument, she stormed away but made sure that he was watching and at just the right moment…she swung her hips a bit. She smiled as she was sure she heard a sound much like a groan coming from his general direction.

She grinned at the memory and turned away from they mirror, smoothed out her shirt one last time before locking up her office and walking towards the elevators, the thought of her impending date far from her mind. She was going to show that board who's the boss.

---- HOUSE M.D. ----

"I just thought I'd check up on you, make sure you were ready for your date tomorrow," said Wilson, walking slowly around to Diagnostics with House. "You _were_ a bit drunk."

"Yeah well, I've given it a lot of thought, Jimmy, and I've decided to take back what I said. I don't need a date. I'm fine by myself. And besides, there are tons of other women out there who would _love _to date me. I don't need a blind date," replied House, sullenly.

They reached Diagnostics and House stomped into his office with Wilson close behind. "You already told Cuddy that you're leaving work early tomorrow. That would just be dishonest if you leave work early and don't actually go on the date. And besides, she has _great_…um…breasts. You have no reason not to go!"

"What do I care whether people think I'm dishonest or honest or sexy or not? And just because you don't know them, doesn't mean I don't have tons of reasons why I shouldn't go…" House said as Stacy walked into the office, "Here's one of them now…" he mumbled.

"Hey Greg. James. What are you boys doing?" asked Stacy with a smile.

"We were gossiping, of course. God, girls are_ so _nosy. No wonder my dad said to stay away from them," replied House in a fair imitation of a teenage school-girl.

Stacy rolled her eyes. "Greg, you shouldn't be wasting your time. You have so much paper work that is due in-"

"Three months."

"Two weeks. And you know how all the legal work, especially for you, takes a lot of time and explaining. I've looked at your files and I've already set up a trip for us. We have to go to Baltimore to discuss your billings with the Medicaid office."

Wilson's eyebrows rose as House shrugged. "I could do that by myself. Why do I need a lawyer?"

"So you don't get arrested for malpractice. They want to discuss _all_ of your billings and that is going to take a lot of explaining and maneuvering." Stacy saw his mouth open and she answered his question before he asked it. "Yes you can maneuver around people, but you can't do it politely and without getting people pissed off with you."

House snorted and shrugged. "Was that all you came here for? Because if it is, I would love it if you left. Your presence is turning me on."

Instead of glaring at him like she usually did, Stacy smiled and Wilson's jaw dropped open. "So I haven't lost my touch." House grinned and Stacy continued. "No, that isn't all I have to say; I was actually wondering if you had seen Lisa." At the mention of Cuddy's name, House's grin faded.

"No I haven't seen her. Oh, unless you're talking about his morning, when she called me in for a little early morning pick-me-up. God she looks so amazing with an afterglow." House grabbed his tennis ball and began to toss it up into the air.

Stacy frowned and was about to answer when Wilson interrupted her. "There she is," he said as he pointed out the glass door just as Cuddy walked by. She had a big smile on her face and was taking her time walking down the hallway. Stacy sprinted to the door, leaving the men behind to watch the drama that was about to unfold just outside the glass doors.

---- HOUSE M.D. ----

Cuddy strolled out of the board room and into the hallway. The board meeting had gone magnificently. She had simply apologized and told them what had happened that morning…minus the part about House, of course. Surprisingly, Wilson wasn't there, but she wasn't too concerned. She'd use it against him some other time. Those meetings were boring as hell. _Lucky bastard…_ She'd find him later. Right now, she just wanted to get back to her office and relax before she had to face Stacy.

"Lisa!"

Or…she could face her now. Lisa didn't stop however. She didn't want to deal with it right now.

---- HOUSE M.D. ----

Just as Stacy left, House grabbed his cane and crept out after her. He quickly hid behind one of the nearest pillars. He did _not_ want to miss this. Wilson watched House leave. He sighed and shook his head before going after him. He crept up behind him and said, "What the hell was that? And what are you doing?"

Without taking his eyes off of Stacy and Cuddy, "Could you be quiet? I want to hear what's going on."

"Lisa! Hey Lise, wait up!" called Stacy running up to her. Lisa stopped but didn't' turn around. Stacy caught up to her and caught her breath. "How are you? Did you sleep well?"

Lisa turned around and looked at Stacy but didn't say anything. House raised his eyebrows. Boy did she look pissed.

Wilson poked him. "Stacy was flirting with you just now!" he whispered.

"I know! Isn't it great? Now shut up!" growled House, as he turned back around.

"What's wrong?" asked Stacy, suddenly concerned.

"Stacy…you're asking me what's wrong. _You're_ asking _me_ what's wrong?" asked Lisa incredulously.

"Yeah, did House do something again?" asked Stacy with a questioning look. House glared at her. Why did it always have to do with him? Wilson poked him again. House looked over his shoulder and Wilson mouthed, _what did you do?_ House just glared and turned back around when he heard her answer.

"It wasn't House this time. For once in my life it wasn't House."

"Then who was it?"

"YOU, dammit!" burst out Cuddy, "HOW COULD YOU SET ME UP WITH A MAN CALLED THE SEX GOD?" Wilson's mouth dropped open and House turned around and grinned.

Stacy shrugged. "I thought it was a good idea at the time."

"Stacy! I just wanted to go out with a nice, wholesome doctor!" snapped Cuddy in an exasperated tone. "A doctor that calls himself the Sex God may be a doctor, but that doesn't mean he's WHOLESOME!!!!!"

---- HOUSE M.D. ----

Wilson whispered, "House, this isn't right. We shouldn't be listening to their conversation. I'm going to leave."

"No!" House whispered. "If you leave now, they'll see you and me too. We're not exactly being discreet are we? They're just not paying attention… I like that in a woman."

"I don't care, I'm leaving." And with that, Wilson attempted to side-step House and get out from behind the pillar. He nearly made it too, but House quickly stuck out his cane and Wilson tripped and fell.

---- HOUSE M.D. ----

Cuddy was seething with anger. Stacy was saved from answering when they heard a crash and quickly turned around to see Wilson sprawled on the floor behind them. Lisa put her hands on her hips and glared at House, who she could see was peeking out behind a pillar. He gave her a cheesy smile.

"He tripped."

Cuddy just glared and turned to Stacy again. "Just cancel it," she said through clenched teeth. And with that she walked away. Stacy turned and caught up with her again.

"I can't. I already made the arrangements. You _have_ to go."

"I'm not going on a date with his guy!"

"It's just dinner Lisa! You don't have to have sex with him. I just thought you needed a release. You don't have to sleep with him. But please just have dinner with him."

Cuddy sighed but continued to glare at her. "God dammit… Fine! FINE! I'll go to the stupid thing!" She stormed away and Stacy turned back around to see Wilson and House still standing there in the hallway. She walked back over to them.

"I found her," she said with a weak smile.

House gave her a fake smile. "Well that's great! Did you guys discuss everything that needed to be discussed?" he asked with mock concern. "Because _Lisa_ seemed quite_ upset_ with you."

Stacy rubbed her forehead. "Yeah, everything's great. Greg, I've gotta go but call me later ok? We have a lot to discuss." She walked up to House and kissed him on the cheek before walking away.

Wilson's eyes grew wide. "Okay, House. You _cannot_ say that THAT wasn't something."

"It was a kiss on the cheek, Jimmy, not a blow job. You do know the difference right?"

"House this is an affair in the making! And I would know! I've cheated on my wives before remember?" said Wilson fiercely. "House," he said in a softer tone, "you still love her, don't you?"

House didn't answer.

Wilson sighed. "House, she's married. And she doesn't look like she's going to leave her husband any time soon. Just leave her alone. Don't encourage her. And go on this date tomorrow. You have to get over her."

"But what if I don't want to get over her?" asked House. Wilson was silent and House stopped. _Shit_. "Never mind," he said quickly, "You're right. I'll get over her. But I'm not going on this date."

"You have no reason not to go."

"I don't care. I'm not going," House replied like a three-year-old.

"You have to. I already made the arrangements."

"If I don't know what the arrangements _are_ then I can't be blamed if I don't show-"

"8:00. At Amour's."

"God dammit! Why did you always have to ruin the plan? I-" House's jaw dropped open. "Tomorrow?"

"Yeah, tomorrow. But that shouldn't be a surprise considering that I told you that already. I just finalized the arrangements today though, that's why I couldn't tell you the time before now. So have fun," said Wilson as he walked toward the door. "And dress nicely. It _is _a formal dinner. Bring flowers or something." And with that, Wilson walked out.

_Shit_, thought House. 8 o'clock was when Cuddy's date was. And that wouldn't have mattered if both of their dates weren't going to be at the same place.

--- HOUSE M.D. ----

Cuddy stormed down the hallway furiously. _God dammit, Stacy!_ She really, _really _didn't want to go on this date. She couldn't even back down because Stacy had already made the frigging arrangements. Cuddy sighed as she slowed her pace and lingered along the balcony overlooking the lobby. This was _her_ hospital. Her baby. As much as she didn't want to leave it, it could survive one night without her right? …If House could ditch work to get ready for a date, then so could she.

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**So…that is chapter 5…PLEASE DON'T SHOOT ME!!!! I know, I know…it's not the date…BUT I PROMISE (my fingers are not crossed) THAT CHAPTER 6 WILL BE THE DATE!!!!! I can no longer put off the inevitable…Seriously, I promise chapter 6 will be extra long and will be the _entire_ date ok? I love you guys!!!!!! Please stay with me!!!! And please REVIEW so that I know you guys are still with me and aren't too mad…tears**

**hugs Much love!!!!!!**


	6. Chapter 6

**Hey guys! Ok so here is chapter 6. Before you continue to read I would just like to clear up a few things. First of all, this is most definitely a Huddy fic. No, I know Stacy was introduced, but you're just going to have to trust me. THIS IS A HUDDY FIC! So now please no more reviews asking where the Huddy went. Because it's always there. Just because there are Hacy undertones doesn't mean I'm going to change the whole storyline around, ok? Thank you very much.**

**Anyway, enjoy this chapter! And thanks for all the wonderful reviews! Thanks to you guys, I've broken 100 reviews and I haven't even hit six chapters yet! That makes me feel so special!!! OMG I love you guys! Thank you so much! Enjoy!**

**Review replies:**

**Ibreak4CSI – **Thank you for the great, awesome, fantastic review! I'm glad you weren't mad. You were one of the few! I'm afraid more people are going to be mad after this chapter as well but I don't care. I'm glad you like it! I know! He totally needs to realize that he loves Cuddy…poor confused guy! Much love.

**Val'drae** – We already addressed your review so I just wanted to say again thank you for reviewing! Glad you like it so far! hugs

**Chante** – What? You're not committing to this relationship? I feel so betrayed!!! LOL That's ok! But you better update soon! I want to know what happens! Sorry I stole your scene! The chapter title is great though! Glad you liked it for the most part though. I hope your Huddy fix has been satisfied, if not fully but partially by this chapter. Come back to the forum soon! We miss you.

**Jen – **Glad you liked it! Hope you like this one as well and I've satisfied your craving for a good Huddy fic…LOL! Talk to you soon!

**House's phoenix** – LMAO! Salivating like a Palovian dog? I haven't heard that one before but I thought it was hysterical! I'm glad you like it so much! wipes slobber off screen LOL

**ScarlettScribble** – I'm glad you thought so! It made me sad as well…OMG I was going to cry! LOL I'm glad it made you feel the same way! But everything can't be happy all the time you know? Drama makes the world go 'round and I thrive on it! OH btw…WHEN ARE YOU UPDATING FALLING STAR??????????

**MJ0621** – LOL…I know…Hacy…sigh…but it brings drama and I love drama! But you and I heart Hacy just a little bit so that's ok…just not when it interferes with Huddy…LOL Hope you enjoy this next chapter!

**LindafromItaly** – HEY! So here is that update! You're going to call me spiteful again aren't you? Just wait just wait! Email me soon! Much love.

**DCI Panda** – The Huddy part is everywhere! This is a Huddy fic after all. I'm not going to make this a Hacy fic so you'll just have to read to find the Huddy fics. They will be everywhere! Promise! Especially in these next few chapters!

**Bea** – Thank you for your review and to answer your question: Of course this is a Huddy fic. It is under the House/Cuddy category. Though there may be Hacy in it, do you think it will last? Let me give you insight on what happens…My story is running parallel to the show, and dips into the RU every so often.

**WuHaoNi** – LOL I agree Hacy does not have the same ring to it that Huddy does, so because of that this fic is going to be Huddy. Most definitely. Glad you like it! Thank you for your great review!

**Princess-Leasel** – Thank you very much! I'm glad you're enjoying it! Thanks for taking the time to review as well!

**Kris the fanficaholic** – LOL well…you'll just have to read and find out now won't you? D

**Buba** – That's so funny! A guy at my school calls himself Bubba (two B's though) but his real name is Jefferson so I can see why he would rather be called Bubba. LOL. Yeah it's pretty difficult to write like House but what I do is as I'm writing I think what random sarcastic comment could I make in this situation and that's what usually comes out! Thanks for your review!

**House plus cuddy** – Thank you very much! Here's that chapter you wanted!

**Huddy4eva** – OMG I just spazzed for a second because I saw this name and immediately thought "How did I review myself?" because your name is the name that I use on the House forum! LOL I just flipped out! My bad! Anyway, thank you for your review!

**Axelchick** – Thank you for your awesome review! I'm glad that you're enjoying it! It takes a lot of effort to make them in character so I'm glad that it worked! D

**Dcloverz** – HI!!!! Thanksgiving was great wasn't it? OK I hope this chapter brings Cuddy back from the edge! There is definitely Huddy in this chapter! So I hope it satisfies you! And I know exactly what I'm going to do for the date so shhhhh! And besides I already told you when we met for Thanksgiving! Don't tell anyone! It's going to be awesome! Loved your review and yes, Wilson has poking powers! Everyone should have poking powers! LOL! Much love SprouseHommie!

**Housefangirl35** – LOL Well thank you for your spaztastic review! I'm happy that you read it and enjoyed it! Update your fanfic soon.

**Vodka Martini – **Thank you for reviewing! And you have to update your fic soon!

**Kita** – Hooray! You read it! Thank you for reviewing and everything! Ok here is that next chapter! Please don't die on me! I NEED THE REVIEWS! LOL! Much love.

**Alyssa** – Thank you for the great review! Glad you liked it!

**Sapphire-Draco-Ice** – HEY! Thanks for reviewing! Wow mine was the first that you read? Really? How did you find it? Considering it was way down the list since I haven't updated in a while! I'm glad that you liked it! Especially since it's your first one and there are so many GREAT Huddy fanfics out there! If you need an recommendations just message me! Much love.

**And thank you Bedbugz, you wonderful beta you! Much love!**

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**CHAPTER 6**

Friday. It was already Friday. Wilson smiled to himself as he sat in his office reviewing some charts. His latest patient was a little girl only ten years old. She had leukemia. Terminal. His smile faded. Being an oncologist really brought you back to reality. The date seemed so _trivial_ compared to what this little girl was going through and yet it was becoming so…

Wilson sighed and ran his hand through his hair. Cancer sucked.

He put the chart down and picked up another. He made a little note and heard a light knock on the door. "Come in," he called, putting his pen down and leaning back in his chair. He was slightly surprised to see that it was Cuddy standing in his doorway, not House. He had expected House to come storming in with some random juvenile reason as to why he wasn't going on the date. So far, the morning had been House-free. He wasn't sure whether that was a good thing or not. "Hey Lisa. What's up?"

Cuddy smiled slightly. "Nothing much. How's work?"

Wilson grimaced. "My latest patient has terminal leukemia."

"I'm sorry."

"Yeah, I'm sorry too. She's ten."

Cuddy's eyes grew wide. "Oh my God."

"Yeah." Wilson sighed. "So Lisa, what's on your mind?"

"I actually came to ask you whether you could do me a favor," said Cuddy.

"Sure. What do you need?" asked Wilson.

"I was wondering whether you could look after the hospital for the rest of the day. I'm going to go home in a couple of hours." Cuddy looked just a slight bit uncomfortable.

"Lisa, are you ok? Are you feeling well?" asked Wilson, a look of concern crossing his face.

"No, no it's nothing like that," Cuddy assured Wilson. "I'm perfectly healthy." _Except for my slightly broken heart_. "I just have a date tonight and I wanted to get home to rest and get ready."

Wilson's jaw dropped open. "You-you-you have a date _tonight_?"

Cuddy frowned. "Why? Is that a problem?" she asked and raised an eyebrow in suspicion.

"Um… no! No, of course not! There's nothing wrong!" said Wilson hurriedly.

"Wilson, you know…you're a terrible liar," replied Cuddy with a grin.

"I know," said Wilson dejectedly, "That's why I always lose at poker."

"So what's going on?" asked Cuddy, sitting on the arm of one of the chairs in front of his desk.

"Seriously, there is nothing going on. I-I was just surprised that after all this time you're actually taking off early from work. You haven't done that in years…for _anything_."

"Yeah…I know. But I just feel the need to take a break. Besides, you know how long it takes for women to get ready. I would never make it for my date if I left the hospital even at five. My date's at eight so-"

Wilson sputtered and interrupted her. "Your date is at eight o'clock?"

"Yeah, at Amours. Why?"

_Oh…shit…_

He quickly composed himself. "Oh no reason. Just wondering…." Wilson trailed off.

"Wilson…" asked Cuddy, dangerously.

"Oh all right," said Wilson in defeat. He sighed and rubbed his eyes before looking at Cuddy again. "House…he has a date tonight as well."

"Yeah I already know that. He's leaving work early to "get ready". I don't see why that's such a big deal."

"You don't?" asked Wilson incredulously. "I mean, you don't! Of course you don't! You're not his best friend! Cuddy…he hasn't gone out on a date since Cameron and that didn't go so well, so I'm a bit worried about this one."

Well, it was _partially_ true right? He _was,_ in actuality, worried that the date would go badly, considering that House hadn't been on a _real_ date since disco died.

But if Cuddy didn't know…well, he's wasn't going to be the one to tell her. But boy would he have liked to be there when she found out.

A wave of sadness washed over Cuddy and she sighed. "Yeah…Well, I hope his date is…everything…that it should be."

Wilson frowned at her tone but didn't question her. "So…you need me to cover for you?"

Cuddy looked up at him and Wilson saw the sadness in her eyes. "Yes, please." She saw his alarmed expression and in a second her wall had gone back up, her sadness hidden away. Standing up, she cleared her throat. "I just have a couple more things to get done before I leave. Everything should be in order so you shouldn't encounter any problems tonight," she said in her most professional voice.

"Ok," replied Wilson.

"Great." Cuddy walked to the door and with her hand on the door handle she turned and looked over her shoulder. "And Wilson?"

"Yeah?"

"Thanks."

"It's no problem. That's what friends are for, right?"

Cuddy smiled and walked out of the office, her heels echoing down the hallway.

---- HOUSE M.D. ----

Cuddy ambled toward the elevators but decided to take the longer "scenic" route past Diagnostics. As she approached the offices, she could hear House's voice out being carried out into the hallway from the conference room. Cuddy stopped in front of the glass and peered inside. She wasn't surprised when she saw Chase and Foreman sitting at the long glass table, discussing their latest case, Dr. Sebastian Charles, leading tuberculosis specialist, while Cameron was standing nearby. House was writing the list of symptoms on the white board, his back also towards her. He hadn't seen her yet. Thank God. It gave her a chance to observe him without him leering at her or making some inappropriate comment. It was a privilege to be able to watch him in his element. He would throw out ideas and have the other three debate the idea and either reject or accept it. He was training them to think quickly and always keep their minds open for new ideas and not always hop on the old. That was what made him such a brilliant diagnostician. He was always thinking…always trying to put two and two together.

Cuddy came out of her reverie realizing that she was staring at him. She glanced up at where the back of his head would have been and nearly shrieked when she saw, not a tuft of brown, but two orbs of icy blue.

---- HOUSE M.D. ----

"You were wrong," said Cameron with her hands across her chest.

House turned away from the white board. "Hey I have feelings. I'm trying my best. Isn't that enough for you?" He was about to turn back toward the white board when he saw Cuddy standing just outside the window. He decided to ignore her for the time being. He turned back toward the board and finished writing the last of the symptoms.

Chase closed the folder he was holding and waved it around. "The abnormal EKG was real-"

"It's not sick sinus syndrome."

Finally having finished writing, House turned back around. "Well, thank God we found out before we put the pacemaker in. And thank God you dragged him into a stairwell to get his heart racing." He looked again over Cameron's shoulder and saw that Cuddy was still standing there. However, she had a slightly dreamy look on her face. He doubted she was actually paying attention to what was happening in the conference room at that very moment. Her mind was elsewhere. Just to double check, he stuck his tongue out at her. Then he flipped her off. Nothing. That's fine. He'd get her attention eventually. And the ducklings had yet to see her.

"We were taking the stairs," Cameron replied. "They keep them in the stairwell," she added sarcastically.

"The guy's a selfish jerk, why would you-"asked Chase, leaning back in his chair, but Cameron immediately jumped to the patient's defense.

"Why would you say he's selfish?" she asked incredulously.

House pointed to Foreman with his cane. "Because he's been talking to Foreman," he said just as the office phone rang.

Chase started to defend himself but Foreman interrupted him. "Hey! The guy's still sick. Can we talk about that? The headaches point to a neurological problem. Acoustic neuroma. Brain tumor causes dizziness, loss of consciousness, messes with the breathing patterns, heart rhythms-"

"Get an MRI," interrupted House as he picked up the phone. "Hello? Oh I'm sorry, I'll be right down," he said in an overly polite voice as Cameron and Chase left the conference room. They saw Cuddy standing there, just staring at House, but didn't say anything. She was probably just there to yell at him for something he did…_again_.

"No problem. I'll do an extra hour to make up." House put down the phone and turned to Foreman who gathered up his papers and was making his way out to follow Cameron and Chase. "I'm late for my clinic duty," said House, stopping Foreman. "Here." He tossed something at Foreman and he caught it. He looked down into his hands and saw it was House's name tag. "Go be me for a couple of hours." Foreman shook his head and left the office, also noticing Cuddy for the first time. He just shrugged and kept walking.

House smiled smugly, took a deep breath and looked up at Cuddy. He stared at her as intensely as he could..._Come on Cuddy…Snap out of your reverie and look at me…You know you want to…I'm too sexy for you to not to want to look at me…Come on…Ok Cuddy…You asked for it…I'M TOO SEXY FOR MY SHIRT, TOO SEXY FOR MY SHIRT, SO SEXY IT HURTS!!!!_

Suddenly he saw her eyes snap to his and he grinned when he saw her jump. He raised an inquisitive eyebrow at her.

---- HOUSE M.D. ----

_Oh shit! He saw me!_ Well, she couldn't just walk away now that she had been caught. It would look too…_suspicious_…

Cuddy took a deep breath and pushed open the conference room door.

"You're scared I'm not going to be available for all those midnight booty calls you've had in mind, right? Now that I have a roaring social life?"

Cuddy snorted. "You're joking, right?" House leaned back in his chair and gave her a smug look. "I was coming to tell you that…I scheduled an hour of clinic duty for you to complete before your date."

"Yeah…and I would have known that _before _I got a call from Nurse Brenda, mighty pissed off I might add, that I was late for said clinic hours that I had no knowledge of." Cuddy was about to reply but he interrupted her. "And of course that is all _your_ fault because I would have gone _straight_ down to the clinic had you told me on time instead of standing outside the conference room staring at my hot bod."

Cuddy's eyes grew wide. "Staring at your…Are you sure I was staring at you and not Chase?"

House raised an eyebrow. "I knew it! I knew you preferred Chase. No one can resist all that British ass…especially when he wears his short shorts."

Cuddy made a face. "And besides, the last time I checked you're still obscenely thin," she retorted. "And wimpy."

Technically that was only _partially _true…He was pale and thin, but he wasn't at all wimpy. He had developed _amazing_ arm muscles from having to use the cane for so many years and she loved to look at them as we walked around the hospital in his skin tight rock band T-shirts.

House clutched his chest. "Oh! You wound me! But seriously, we both know that you're hot for me. If you don't believe me, let me show you. I'm feeling a little…frisky," he said as he began to slowly make his way toward her. He didn't stop until she was almost pressed into his chest.

Cuddy stood her ground and didn't step back. He wasn't _that_ intimidating. "If you do me now, I won't have enough energy to put out for my date, and he _is_ the Sex God. I won't have enough energy to keep up with him and I do need a good lay."

House pouted. "The frisky…it went away."

Cuddy grinned. "Just go do you clinic hours."

She was at his office door, her hand on the door handle, when he said, "I just told Foreman to do it." She turned around and raised an eyebrow. "If I go to the clinic _now_ I won't have enough energy to put out for my date, and I've been promised that she has nice funbags. I won't have enough energy to satisfy her and I don't want to disappoint. I want to get close enough to find out if those babies are real."

Cuddy rolled her eyes and left the office, knowing full well that House was staring at her ass.

He was.

---- HOUSE M.D. ----

**3:45 PM**

House made his way to the front desk in the lobby. Boy did it feel good to get out of this hospital early. Even if it was to go on some _stupid_ blind date. House made a face as he signed a couple of forms. Nurse Brenda turned to him. "4:00 Doctor House checks out. Can you put that down?" She looked over his shoulder at the clock on the wall.

"It's only 3:45…"

House turned and saw the clock. "I'm rounding up."

Nurse Brenda just rolled her eyes.

--------------------

Cuddy was standing behind her desk, signing last minute forms and putting them in the OUT tray for her assistant to pick up later. She moved quickly, wanting to get out of there as fast as possible.

She looked up for a moment and saw House standing at the front desk talking to the nurse. She shook her head. He was always trying to take advantage of her…_God he was annoying_. She smiled slightly as she signed the last form. She hurried to the door, grabbing her purse and coat before turning off the light and locking the door.

She made a quick stop at Wilson's office to say good bye and promptly left the hospital before some problem came up and she'd have to stay to fix it. She had a nail appointment at 4. As off now, Wilson was in charge and she was no longer Dr. Lisa Cuddy, Dean of Medicine at Princeton-Plainsboro Teaching Hospital. She was Lisa Cuddy…_Party Pants_.

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**4:45 PM**

House was lying on the couch in front of the TV, a beer in one hand and a packet of Doritos in the other. Getting off early for work was…_amazing_. He really should go on dates more often if this was going to be the pay-off. Screw sex. No clinic duty. _This_ was heaven.

Wilson had recommended that he leave early to get ready. Sure that was a good idea, but _five hours early_? What the hell was he supposed to do for five hours? It wasn't like he had to put on makeup or something. He just had to hop in the shower, grab some random shirt and jacket and run out of the house.

Yeah…this was the life.

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Cuddy had pulled up in front of the nail salon promptly at 4 and rushed into the salon. All the women turned as the bell on the door jingled. She swept her hair out of her face and all the women smiled. "Hi, Lisa!" they called out in unison. She smiled. She was a regular at Cindy's Nails and always requested Cindy when she came to get her nails done. She waved at all the women and walked over to pick out a color. Hmm…Do Me Red…

_Perfect._

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**5:45 PM**

Cuddy had been out of the salon in record time so she decided to take her time getting home. She did have ample time before the date. She took the long route home and drew herself a bubble bath. She piled her hair on to her head and stripped out of her clothes. She slid into the warm, bubbly water and sighed. This was perfectly…exquisite. The water lapped up against her with every movement she made and after awhile she felt herself grow drowsy. She could spare a little time for a nap. She'd need the energy for the date. In a matter of moments her eyelids fell closed and she drifted into a blissful sleep.

--------------------

**6:45 PM**

House jerked upward with a start. _What the hell?_ After looking around, he realized that he was in his apartment and had fallen asleep in front of the television once again. _Damn_. He rubbed his eyes and suddenly realized…_OH SHIT! THE DATE!_ What the hell was the time? He searched his apartment for the clock and saw the blinking red light. _6:45?_ Shit.

He scrambled off the couch and retrieved his cane before hobbling over to the bathroom. He quickly stripped off his clothes and climbed into the shower. He had to move quickly. He still didn't know what he was supposed to be wearing.

--------------------

Cuddy awoke to the strangest feeling. She was completely wet! _What the hell?_ She shook her head and opened her eyes. _Shit_. She was still in her bathroom. What the hell was the time? She eyes jerked to the clock on the bathroom wall. _6:45? SHIT!_ She quickly stood up and grabbed the towel, not bothering the wipe her feet on the bath rug. She nearly slipped and cracked her head on the bathroom counter in her rush to get to her bedroom. She began to dry her hair as she walked over to her dresser. She grabbed a black, lace thong and bra set and turned to her bed where she had laid out her outfit.

She slowed down her frantic actions and realized that she wasn't as late as she thought. At least she knew what she was wearing. House probably didn't even know that. She smirked at the thought of him running around his house buck-naked, frantically searching for clothes. She laughed, dropped her towel and began to get ready for her date.

--------------------

**7:45 PM**

After doing a final make-up touch-up in the hallway mirror, Cuddy glided over to the door and slipped on her black stilettos. Just as she grabbed her shawl, she heard a honk outside her house.

Her cab was here.

She smiled. She really didn't want to drive. And besides, it made everything more…_elegant_ if her date drove her home afterwards…and if he _happened_ to be really great…and she just _happened_ to invite him inside…and it just _happened_ to be ninety degrees and he had to take of his clothes and the coolest place in the house just happened to be her bedroom, on her bed. She grinned.

_I could really get used to this_.

--------------------

House cursed when he heard the sound of the horn outside his apartment building. It was already 7:45 and he still hadn't put on his tie. _Whatever_. He'd do it in the taxi. He grabbed his tie, jacket, and cane and quickly limped out the door.

---- HOUSE M.D. ----

The taxi pulled up in front of Amours. Cuddy paid the driver and thanked him before stepping out of the cab. She walked up to the doors of the restaurants, he stride confident. However, when she reached the doors, she faltered. Was she really going to do this? Was this really happening? She placed a hand on her chest and felt her heart beat rise rapidly. Did she really think she could do this? Date? No way. This wasn't right. Before she could pull her hand away from the door handle she felt someone come up behind her.

"Is the door stuck?"

Cuddy turned around and looked into the eyes of one of the most attractive men she had ever had the pleasure of laying eyes on. He had golden-brown hair and the most gorgeous smile. She cleared her throat. "E-Excuse me?"

The man smiled and ran his hand through his hair. _What was this guy's name?_ She decided to call him Mr. Hunky.

"I was asking whether the door was stuck because you've been standing there for about five minutes staring at the door handle like it was going to eat your hand."

"OH!" she exclaimed in surprise. "I-I was just…" she sighed. "To tell you the truth, I was trying to work up the courage to go inside. I have a date tonight."

"Really? So do I."

"Seriously?"

"Yeah, and I'm a bit nervous myself. I heard my date was incredibly beautiful and I'm not sure whether I look ok."

Cuddy smiled and stepped back. She gave him the once over. "Don't worry. You look great."

Mr. Hunky smiled. "Thanks. So why don't we go inside and see whether our dates are here? I'll go with you if you want."

"Sounds good." Cuddy took a deep breath and gripped the handle. She was about to open the door when she felt the man's hand cover her own.

"Let me."

Cuddy's eyes widened in surprise, but she stepped back and Mr. Hunky gallantly stepped forward and opened the door. Cuddy gave a small smile and walked inside.

_Oh my God. He opens doors._

---- HOUSE M.D. ----

Putting on a tie in a moving vehicle was a nightmare. He kept getting jostled every time there was a frigging red light. Shit, this date was already going terribly and he hadn't even met the girl yet. He looked like he just stepped out of a wind tunnel. And he was already late, considering he was supposed to _be there_ at eight and it _already was_ eight.

He was relieved when the taxi finally pulled up in front of the restaurant. He paid the driver and was about to get out when he realized that he had forgotten…_the flowers_. Shit. He closed the door again and the cab driver gave him a confused look. "What the hell man? Are you getting out or not?"

House just ignored him and instead said, "To the nearest flower shop and fast! Ándale ándale arriba!"

---- HOUSE M.D. ----

Cuddy stood in the waiting room of Amours and was amazed by how beautiful everything was. They both walked up to the hostess.

"Hello Madame, monsieur. Do you have reservations?"

Cuddy stepped forward and realized suddenly that she didn't know what the reservations were under. How could Stacy forget to tell her that? "Oh my goodness. I'm sorry but I don't seem to know what my reservations are under."

Mr. Hunky stepped forward and Cuddy noticed the hostess' eyes narrow. "I happen to know that I made reservations under the initials TSG."

Cuddy's eyes grew wide. "Just one moment sir, while I check the list," said the hostess. Mr. Hunky turned and gave Cuddy one of his winning smiles but noticed the look of utter shock on her face. "What?" he asked.

Cuddy sputtered, then grabbed his hand and pulled him close. "You're the Sex God?" she asked in a low, urgent whisper.

The Sex God smiled. "You're my date." He gave her the once over. "Wow."

Cuddy blushed and turned to the hostess. "Madam, I've found out that I have reservations under TSG as well."

The hostess looked at them both and gave Cuddy a sad smile. "Right this way. Please follow me. I will seat you."

The hostess led them across the restaurant to a table set for two. There were two candles on it as well as a small vase with a single rose in it. "Here you are Madame, monsieur. Your waiter will be here shortly."

They thanked her and she briskly walked off without a second glance. Cuddy frowned at the unusual behavior of the hostess but did not comment. She began to pull her seat out when the Sex God swooped over and pulled out her chair for her. She smiled as she sat down.

_Oh my God. He pulls out chairs!_

---- HOUSE M.D. ----

The taxi pulled up in front of the flower shop and House quickly hobbled out of the cab.

He entered the shop, opening the door loudly and briskly walked up to the desk.

The florist smiled. "Hello sir, what can I—"

"I need a bouquet of flowers. Now."

"Ok. What kind would you—"

"Anything. Just hurry up. Choose whatever. I don't particularly care."

"Is this for a special—"

"How many freaking questions do you need to ask? Yes it is for a special occasion. Now can you hurry up?" The florist just looked at him and House sighed and ran his fingers through his hair. "It's a first date, if you must know, and I need a bouquet to make up for being late. Are you happy now?"

The florist thought for a moment. "I know just what you need." She quickly went into the back of the store and began putting together a bouquet at light speed. When she came back, she was holding a large bouquet of orchids complete with a ribbon.

"How do you feel about—"

"Yeah yeah, that's great. Just give me the damn thing." He grabbed it from her hand. "How much?"

"For a bouquet of that—"

"Listen, I don't need the whole frigging history of the flowers, for crying out loud. Money?" he asked, waving his wallet around.

"Forty bucks."

House's jaw dropped open. "What? You have got to be kidding me. I could have picked those and put them together myself."

"Well, if you don't want them" replied the florist, "I can take them back."

House sighed irritably and pulled two twenties from his wallet and slammed them on the counter and limped out of the store.

"And you have a nice night now, you hear?" called the florist.

---- HOUSE M.D. ----

"So tell me about yourself."

Cuddy smiled. "First, tell me your name."

"The Sex God," he replied with a cheeky grin.

"Haha, very funny. But seriously…"

Still grinning, "Getting down to business I see. Okay my real name is Edward. Dr. Edward Jones."

"Ah. OK."

"What? You're not going to tell me your name? It's only fair," Edward replied with a pout.

Cuddy smiled. "My name is Lisa. Dr. Lisa Cuddy."

"Lisa. Your name fits you perfectly." Cuddy blushed for the second time that night. This guy was amazing. He was charming, good-looking, had a great sense of humor. It's a wonder he wasn't already married.

They continued to chat until the waiter came to take their order. She placed her order and as he was placing his, she noticed a young woman sitting all alone at the table next to her, looking utterly miserable. Cuddy cleared her throat. "Excuse me miss."

The woman looked up. "Are you okay?" asked Cuddy, a look of concern on her face. The woman could not have been older than 25 years old. And she was quite pretty as well.

The girl smiled weakly. "I had a blind date today. I guess I was stood up."

Cuddy smiled sympathetically. "I'm sorry. The guy must be a real ass."

"No kidding." The girl sighed. "I'm going to wait for a couple more minutes. If he doesn't show up, I'm out of here." Cuddy nodded and turned back to Edward, who was giving her a quizzical look. Cuddy smiled. "What?" Edward just raised an eyebrow. "She looked upset and I just wanted to see whether she was okay. The guy stood her up. What an—" Cuddy stopped short, her eyes widening in alarm and surprise as she saw the man who had just walked through the restaurant door.

Edward laughed. "Are you going to finish that sentence?"

"Oh my God. House."

"What?"

Cuddy groaned. What the hell was he doing here? She looked up and House's eyes locked with hers. As he started walking towards her, it suddenly hit her. His date was now. His date was _here_.

_Shit_.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

**So….hmm…what did you think? Yes, yes I know it isn't the whole date, but I had to update this first! I needed a good place to leave off. At least now you know…House is NOT the Sex God. MUAHAHAHA! LOL And I'm not apologizing! (Thanks Val'drae!) I know, I know…I'm evil and I should die…but think about it, if you kill me now, you'll never be able to find out what happens! LOL! So please don't kill me and instead press that little purple button in the corner and review! Thanks so much you guys! Love ya!**

**HA**


	7. Chapter 7

**Hello everyone!!! So finally chapter 7 is here!!! Are you excited? I know I am! XD It is extremely long guys so you better be ready. It took a while to write considering that I didn't know what I was doing…LOL but I figured it out and here it is!**

**Review replies:**

**Eleanor J** – Thanks for the review! I'm glad that you picked up on that because not many people did! XD

**Ibreak4CSI **– I loved writing that scene…It originally wasn't like that but when I thought of it I knew that I had to write that in there. I hearted that scene a lot. XD Thanks so much for reviewing!

**Thevigilante15** – Heehee…I didn't update as fast as I wanted to but there were so many things going on and I have exams this week…EEEP…But here is the update and I'm glad that you like it! Oh and you better update your fic soon!!!!! I want to know what happens!!!!

**ScarlettScribble** – I'm glad that you figured it out!!! Not many people did! Congrats! Muahahahahaha! The waitress…hmm…strokes chin You'll just have to read to find out!!! XD

**Gabiroba** – LOL please don't kill me! Here's the update that you wanted! That was funny though! Glad you liked it!

**Mambogoddess **– I'm so glad that you like it! Thanks for reviewing! That makes me feel so special! XD

**LindafromItaly** – Hey! How are you? Haven't heard from you in a while! Thanks for reviewing! They couldn't be on a date yet…what's the fun in that? I know I'm mean but here is the next chapter! Enjoy!

**WuHaoNi **– XD Well, here is the rest of the chapter…hope you enjoy it…

**House's phoenix** – I'm so glad that you like it…I've probably said this already but thanks for the review!!! Here's the update!!!

**Buba **– I agree…if House was TSG then it wouldn't have been as interesting and the story would have been very predictable would it not?

**Val'drae** – Well I have a great teacher XD. Please update your fic soon and yes pm me back! We haven't talked in a while.

**Alittlesummerwine** – Glad you like it! Thanks for taking the time to review!

**Xuanny87 **– Hey! Thanks so much for reviewing!!! I'm so glad that you're enjoying it!

**Sapphire-Draco-Ice** – You are the best! Your review made me so happy when I read it. Thank you so much. That made me feel so special and great and hugs Thank you soooooo much!!!!!!! That was awesome!!

**Ashlee** – Oh thank you so much for reviewing!!!

**Kris the fanficholic** – Yes it is most definitely a Huddy fic. Just read this chappy and you'll see what happens! XD

**Bubbles **– gasps Was it really that great? LOL JK I'm soooo glad that you liked it! Your review made me sooooo happy! Oooo…that's a really good idea…but you'll just have to read to find out what happens…XD Thank you so much for reviewing! Enjoy!

**Isabel Juno** – Well…I hope that you enjoy this chapter more than the last one then. )

**MJ0621** – Ok glad that you liked it!!! Yeah I prefer Hacy to Hameron any day! XD

**Princess-Leasel** – Woo! Thanks for reviewing! I'm glad that you enjoyed reading it!!!

**Starstacey** – of course it will all be fine in the end! LOL We just need drama before hand!

**House4cuddy** – Woo glad you were able to read it! Glad you liked it! You better update again soon!

**Dcloverz **– Thank you for reviewing…harsh toke dude. Well…it'll get cliffy eventually…Every chapter can't be cliffy!

**Chante** – You always leave such great reviews and they are so long!!! Wootness!!! Ahhhh here's the update! Please don't hurt me!

**Sinister Scribe **– Thank you soooo much for reviewing! It means so much to me that you think so because you are such an amazing writer. Hugs thanks so much!

**LadyEmera1d **– Ooo I heard that there were some great ones on livejournal but I haven't been able to read them because I don't actually have one. Glad that you liked mine though and thanks for reviewing!

**Ang catalonan **– glad you liked it! Thanks for reviewing!

**Thyla **– Hey! There you are! I was wondering where you went! Glad you reviewed and that you enjoyed it!!! Much love.

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CHAPTER 7

The cab pulled in front of Amours for the second time that night. House paid the driver and limped quickly into the restaurant. The door jingled as he pulled it open, causing heads to turn at his abrupt entrance. He ignored them as he scanned the restaurant, looking for that one face. That one familiar face. When he finally saw her, he noticed she was sitting at a table with a man whose face he couldn't see. He did have a full head of hair though. House scowled as he ran his fingers through his own messy crop.

"Excuse me. Excuse me sir."

House turned and saw the restaurant hostess smiling at him. House approached her. "May I help you sir?" she asked with a smile.

"Yes you can actually. Do you know anything about that man who happens to be eating with that woman who is wearing an extremely low cut dress?" asked House without taking his eyes off of Cuddy.

The hostess looked at him and then followed his gaze and noticed that he was looking at the incredibly beautiful woman that had walked in earlier. "That man?" The tone of her voice was enough to draw House's eyes away from Cuddy's face. He saw that the hostess' eyes were narrowed. "He is Dr. Edward Jones, head neurosurgeon at Princeton General," she replied. House nodded his thanks and was about to walk away when she added, "And he's the biggest bastard I have ever met."

House halted and turned back to her. "Really? That's refreshing."

The hostess gave him a questioning look. "Oh um…I'm usually the biggest bastard anyone's ever met." House gave her a cheeky grin.

"Oh no. I don't know you, and you very well may be a bastard," the hostess said smiling, "But you aren't like that man. I doubt anyone would do what he does. Tell me, would you go out on several dates a month-"

"Well, yeah if I was desperate enough-"

"-if you were married?"

House had to do everything in his power to keep his jaw from dropping open. "This guy is…married?"

"Yeah to one of our best customers. He does this once a month. He tells his wife that he's out playing poker with his pals or working late and invites women out on dates. It is the most awful thing I think I have ever witnessed."

House studied her intently. She seemed to be seething with rage at this man. "You seem to know a lot about his guy."

"Yeah unfortunately one day I was coming in from the kitchen and saw him on his phone. He was talking to his wife and told her that he was at work and would be home late. When he finished the call, he saw me standing there and made me promise not to say anything." The hostess grimaced. "I was completely disgusted but promised to keep my mouth shut. One of these days, though, I'm going to call up that poor woman and tell her just what her husband's been up to, that jerk."

House nodded. "Oh one last question: He doesn't harm the women he goes out with does he?" he asked, trying to keep the concern from seeping into his voice.

"No. He usually doesn't even take them home with him or go home with them. The most I've seen him do is give them a kiss goodnight and walk them to their cars. It's never the same girl twice, though." The hostess sighed. "I just feel so bad…this woman seems so nice. I would hate to see her heart broken."

_Yeah, me too_, thought House.

The hostess took one last look at the table before turning her attention back to House. "Well, sir, that's enough of gossiping from me. I hope that I've answered your questions. Now may I ask whether you have a reservation?"

"Yeah I have reservations under House," he replied gruffly.

"Your date is already waiting for you and I suggest you hurry, sir. It seems that she is leaving.

House quickly turned around and saw that Cuddy was still watching him. He looked away from her and saw a young woman with golden blonde hair standing up and getting ready to leave. "Shit," muttered House as he quickly limped over to the young woman, completely by-passing Cuddy, who was staring at them openmouthed.

He cleared his throat and the young woman turned around. Anything that House had planned to say at that moment died in his throat. Because she was just that: young. Too young. _Way_ too young. House groaned inwardly, trying to keep the horror from his face. Like _Cameron_-young. _Shit_. What the hell was Wilson smoking when he saw this woman? Did he think that he just wanted an easy lay? Was he really that sleazy? House took her in.

She did have nice funbags, though. Wilson wasn't wrong about that._ Crap…sleazy thoughts._

The woman stood there with her hands on her hips, giving him a questioning glare. House couldn't meet her eyes and chose to look at a spot on the floor just at her feet. "Hi. I'm Greg. I'm your date for tonight."

The woman looked surprised but was quick to respond. "Hi. I'm Amy and I _was_ going to be your date this evening but I was a little put off when you didn't show up."

Wow…she really didn't mince words. "Um…I'm sorry…that I…was late," House managed to stammer out, slightly forced. "I picked up these flowers for you." He shoved to flowers into her hands. "I…would like…to have dinner with you," he croaked out. In reality, having dinner with her was the _last_ thing he wanted to do. He didn't want to go through another Cameron-date _ever_ again. And this had the makings of a _very_ Cameron-ish date. But he couldn't back down…Cuddy was right there, watching.

Amy looked at him but sat down again anyway. "All right. I did get all dressed up and the flowers are beautiful."

---- HOUSE M.D. ----

He was coming. _Oh my God. Why is he coming over here?_ Cuddy saw his smile waver as he quickened his uneven stride and…walked right past her. _What the hell?_

She saw him approach the young woman and suddenly it all clicked. She was _his_ date. Cuddy groaned inwardly and silently watched House. She heard him clear his throat and as the woman turned around she saw House's face contort with complete horror.

Cuddy grinned. She had noticed, as well, that the girl was incredibly young. Too young for House. She had no doubt in her mind that he was thinking the same thing. He was probably also reliving his date with Cameron. She had heard from Wilson that it hadn't gone very well…something about him, feelings, and insulting Cameron in some way, shape or form. She wasn't surprised. Cuddy stifled her laughter and almost missed his quiet apology.

"Um…I'm sorry…that I…was late." Cuddy's eyes grew wide. _He apologized_. No snide comment about her earlier bitchiness, nothing. He was being a perfect…gentleman.

So that was what she was missing out on. A small pang of sadness ran through her and she wanted to look away from them, but she couldn't seem to take her eyes off of him. He looked incredibly handsome too. He was wearing nice pants and that sky blue shirt that she loved.

Cuddy saw them sit down and Amy smiled. He ran a nervous hand through his hair. Cuddy sighed. She was brought back by a hand on hers. She turned suddenly and noticed Edward sitting there, a look of concern on his face. "Lisa, are you ok?"

Cuddy smiled weakly. She didn't need House. And he certainly didn't seem to want her. Well, she'd move on. She had just met this amazing man who actually seemed to be interested in her and not her breasts. "Yes Edward. I'm feeling fine. Just fine."

---- HOUSE M.D. ----

"So, you're just a med student?" House asked slowly, trying to make 'small talk'. He was _so_ not right for this.

"I'm in my last year of medical school. I'm so glad that I'm finally finished. I mean I've loved learning and working under all of those great doctors, but I'm glad to finally be able to make my place in the world," replied Amy with a small smile as she took a bite of her salad. "So where do you work?"

House grimaced. This wasn't working. "Princeton-Plainsboro Teaching Hospital," he said rather abruptly.

"Really? I was planning on applying there. I really want to work in the Diagnostics department."

House's head jerked up, his eyes wide with alarm. "Diagnostics?"

"Yeah I've always been interested in diagnosing patients and my professors said that I had an aptitude for it. I heard that the head of the department and PPTH was a brilliant doctor and I was really hoping to learn from him."

House shook his head. This was _definitely_ not right. In fact, this was _so wrong_ on so many levels. She wanted to _work_ for him, not date him.

"Listen chick, you seem really nice…" House began. This nice-guy talk really sounded wrong coming from his mouth. "Listen, I suck at this nice guy stuff. So just listen to me and let me say this." Amy's face contorted with surprise. "What the hell are you doing here on a date with a man old enough to be your father? You must be either incredibly desperate or incredibly horny to keep this dinner going. So I'm going to let you leave with your dignity in tact. I'm going to the bathroom. If you have any ounce of self-worth, you won't be here when I get back."

With that House stood up and just as he was about to walk past her, he stopped and said, "Oh and you _don't_ want to work at PPTH. The Dean is the devil incarnate. And the head of diagnostics, I hear, is the biggest asshole that ever walked the planet."

---- HOUSE M.D. ----

"So what do you specialize in?" asked Cuddy, her chin resting on one hand.

"Well, I'm the head neurosurgeon at Princeton General and-"

"What made you want to become a doctor?"

"Ahh…my grandfather was a neurologist and my father was a general surgeon. So I guess both of their influences made me want to become a neurosurgeon. Um-"

"What about your mother?"

Edward laughed. "Excuse me but when will I get the chance to ask _you_ questions?"

Cuddy just looked at him, surprise evident on her face. "What?"

"You were asking me so many questions and not giving me a chance to ask you questions in return."

"Oh…I'm sorry," Cuddy replied, her face reddening.

"So here's my question: Why are you asking me so many questions?"

_Because I'm trying to distract myself and not pay attention to the man at the table nearby. Oh God…_ "Um…because…I just like to know about people…?"

Edward gave her a disbelieving look.

"Ok, well it's more to see if people enter the professions they do because it pays a lot or because they genuinely want to."

_Nice save_.

Edward looked at her flushed face and then smiled. "Okay. I get it. But now it's my turn. What do you do?"

"I'm…" Cuddy hesitated. "I'm the Dean of Medicine at Princeton Plainsboro Teaching Hospital."

"No way. You're the Dean of Medicine?"

Cuddy grimaced. "Yes." This was it. Where he made some snide remark because he was jealous that she had a better job…it always came after she told them. She sighed. Well, the date was nice while it lasted.

"You must be one of the only female Deans of Medicine in the entire country." Cuddy nodded gravely. "Why do you look so mournful? That's amazing and you should be proud that you've achieved a status that has been reached by only a few women."

Cuddy's eyes widened in surprised. "Why are you looking at me like that?" he asked.

Cuddy didn't know what to say.

Edward continued. "So you're beautiful, intelligent, extremely successful and quite outspoken, and yet, you're still single. How does that work? You must have men falling at your feet every time you walk into a crowded place. What are you doing on a date with me?"

Cuddy couldn't think of a time that she'd blushed more deeply than she did at that very moment. She was as red as her fingernails. Why was she still single? _Because you married your job, dumb ass._ It was probably the best and worst decision of her life. She loved her job. She probably would be a completely different person if she didn't have this job…but this job has also, as Stacy so blatantly pointed out, deprived her of a social life. The most socializing that she did was with potential donors for the hospital…and House.

Cuddy smiled weakly but was saved from answering the question when she heard the voice of the man she had been trying to ignore all night. She had to do everything she could to stop her jaw from dropping open and fought to keep her face neutral. _Did he really just say that?_ She turned around and as if in response to her mental question, she saw him stand up and walk away from the table and towards the restrooms. Cuddy's eyes narrowed. _He's not getting away that easily_.

"Edward, excuse me for a moment." She got up, grabbed her purse and quickly strode over the bathrooms. She walked through the doorway and immediately felt a hand on her arm pull her rather violently into the hallway. A hand came out and covered her mouth to muffle her scream. She slammed hard into a male chest and felt someone's warm breath on her ear. "Why, Dr. Cuddy, were you looking for little 'ole me?"

What Cuddy said in reply was incoherent, considering his hand was still covering her mouth. He could tell she was mad, though, by how her eyes narrowed. "Come on Cuddles, is that the best you can do?"

She tried to pry his hand away from her mouth but to no avail. _That's it House._ She opened her mouth and bit down on his hand. House snatched his hand away with a small yelp of surprise. "My God, you're vicious, woman!" House said, glaring at her, "I'm going to have to get my rabies shot now. All you had to do was ask and I would have let you go. It was almost as if you liked being near me…"

Cuddy realized that she was still standing close to him and jumped back. She glared at him when she heard his faint chuckle. "What the hell are you doing? Were you trying to kidnap me or something? Or did you just want to feel me up?" asked Cuddy with her hands on her hips.

Oh boy was she mad. House grinned inwardly. He loved making her mad. And she looked so…ruffled, considering that her lipstick was smudged and her hair was mused. He finally got a good look at her dress too. It was black with thin straps and was made of some silky material that was soft to the touch. It ended just above her knees and when he looked down he saw that she was wearing her incredibly sexy open-toed sandals. "Would you kill me if I said the latter?"

Cuddy smacked his arm. "You're a jerk. Dammit now I have to fix my hair." She walked over to the women's bathroom and knocked lightly before opening the door. House, close on her heels, saw that it was a single bathroom and slipped in after her before she closed the door. "House, what are you doing? This is the women's bathroom."

"What can I say? I get turned on by watching women on toilets."

"Pervert."

House sighed and ran a hand over his face. "Look, you're not even planning on using the bathroom. You just wanted to fix your hair. Let me remind you that you came into the men's room while I was actually going _and_ you stood there _watching_ me. So there," he said with a childish pout. "Who's the pervert now?"

Cuddy just rolled her eyes as she looked in the mirror and gasped as she saw the state of her lipstick. It was completely smudged around her mouth. She looked at House in the mirror and he lifted up his hand guiltily. She saw that the inside of his hand was covered in red lipstick. She scowled. "Get me some toilet paper."

House looked at her, slightly confused. "What?"

"Get me some toilet paper," she said again, like it was the most obvious thing in the world.

"Why?

"Do I always need to give you a reason?"

"Yes."

Cuddy sighed. "Because I need to wipe the lipstick off before I reapply it."

"See, now was that so hard?" asked House as he grabbed some toilet paper and handed it to her. She snatched from his hand and proceeded to wipe of the lipstick from around her mouth. "Vicious. Are you like this in the sack as well?"

Cuddy glared at him in the mirror and then turned around and looked him in the eye. "Yeah, and it's just too bad that you're going to miss it," she snarked.

House smirked. She always was able to keep up with his remarks. That's why she was his favorite banter buddy.

"So anyway, back to why you were following me…You never did answer me." House waggled his eyebrows. "Date not going so great?"

"My date is going just fine. Actually better than fine, it's going fabulously. I came after _you_," she said, poking him hard in the chest, "because I _cannot_ believe what you said to that girl."

"Who?"

"Your date, you idiot."

"Oh, you mean _Amy_? If you're going to scold me, you should at least know the person's name," House said, smirking.

"I don't care what that poor girl's name is. What you said to her was rude, uncalled for and utterly-"

"True."

Cuddy's eyes widened in anger. "I can't believe you! How can you just say that to someone?

"Because it's true," he said simply. "Oh and you're yelling by the way."

"House, just because she's young, doesn't mean she's desperate for love or turned off by human contact like you are. Some people have feelings and those feelings aren't there for you to stomp all over! I know you don't have any yourself but that doesn't mean you have to set out to hurt everyone else!"

House's eyes narrowed slightly. "Are we still talking about the girl or are we now talking about you?"

Cuddy sucked in a breath. _Shit_. "House, what you said to her…why would you say something like that to anyone?"

"Because it's true."

"HOUSE! Do you have any other answer?"

"You're still yelling."

"Are you being intentionally dense?"

"Huh?" House made a stupid face.

"You're infuriating."

"I know." Cuddy glared at him. "Cuddy…" House looked away and Cuddy just shook her head. She was about to walk out of the bathroom when she felt his hand on her arm. "She was too young. Way to young." Cuddy turned around. "Like _Cameron_-young. I couldn't…wasn't going to deal with that again."

Cuddy nodded again made to leave the bathroom again. They both left and when they were in the hallway he stopped her again. "Cuddy."

She turned and gave him a questioning look. "Leave with me. Right now. Don't go back to your date. Leave with me."

Cuddy was sure her eyes were bugging out of her head. But just as soon was her glare back. "What are you trying to pull?"

House looked at her and then shrugged. "Come on Cuddy. That guy is a loser. You can do so much better." He made to take her arm but she jerked away.

"What the hell is wrong with you? Are you high or something? You're really starting to freak me out…and that's saying something considering I'm talking about you," said Cuddy with a slight look of concern on her face.

"Come on. You know you'd rather be on a date with me right now." He had blurted it out before he could stop himself.

Cuddy's mouth dropped open before she could stop it. "Excuse me?"

House ran a hand through his hair. "Ah…you'd rather be on a date with me than with that loser with great hair."

"You don't know anything about Edward. How can you immediately assume he's a loser?" Cuddy asked through narrowed eyes.

"First of all, do you see how he combed his hair? Only momma's boys do that. Second of all, he's wearing a red tie which automatically means that he's Republican and you know what they say about Republicans…the redder the tie, the smaller the-"

"HOUSE! Edward is charming and handsome and has a great sense of humor and I am _thoroughly_ enjoying the time I'm spending with him tonight. Just because you had a miserable evening doesn't mean that everyone has to suffer right along with you," Cuddy nearly yelled, steaming with rage. "Now _if_ you don't mind, I'd like to go back to my _date_."

A look of panic crossed House's face. She was leaving. She was going to get hurt…

"He's married!"

Cuddy stopped dead in her tracks. "What?"

"Cuddy, he's married and has been for a number of years now."

Cuddy chuckled. "Yeah, that's very funny, House. I've known you for too long. You're going to have to think of something much cleverer for me to believe you." She turned to leave when she heard a scream of rage.

Cuddy and House quickly walked to the doorway into the restaurant and saw a woman standing over Edward, seeming ready to slap him across the face. Her own face was red with rage and she was yelling at him at the top of her lungs. "EDWARD WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU DOING HERE?"

Cuddy heard Edward stammer slightly, "Um…I…"

"WHAT IS GOING ON?"

"Um…"

Cuddy took the opportunity to intervene at that very moment. She walked over. "Excuse me Ma'am but may I ask what your business is here?"

"Are you the woman here with my husband?" the woman demanded angrily.

Cuddy stood stock still. "Your…husband?" she echoed.

"YES MY HUSBAND!" The woman looked at Edward again. "I CAN'T BELIEVE YOU WOULD DO THIS TO ME! I THOUGHT YOU LOVED ME!" She let out a shriek and ran out of the restaurant, tears streaming down her face.

Cuddy couldn't move. She just looked at Edward who looked at her with an uncomfortable look. "You're married?"

Edward looked away. "Yes." Cuddy didn't react.

"How many years?"

"10."

That was when Cuddy lost it. She didn't care _who_ was watching. "YOU'VE BEEN MARRIED FOR 10 YEARS AND YOU'RE DATING OTHER WOMEN? ARE YOU NUTS?"

Edward sighed. "Don't get me wrong. I love my wife dearly. It's just that I'm addicted to dating. Going on first dates give me this rush that I don't feel at any other time. I love meeting new women and talking to them. I've never _once_ cheated on her, in the literal sense of the word. I never sleep with any of the women that I date." Edward looked away again. "I guess I emotionally cheated on her though."

Cuddy shook her head. "I can't believe you did this. You made me like you…"

Edward stood up and took her arms then and pulled her into his embrace. "I'm sorry."

Cuddy struggled to get out of his grasp. "Don't touch me!" That was all the warning he got before she slapped him across the face. The patrons in the restaurant cheered. "Get out of my sight. I never want to see you again." There was continued cheering as Edward left the restaurant, his head hung low.

---- HOUSE M.D. ----

House stood in the background and watched the drama unfold. He saw that all the patrons were watching and if Cuddy had been paying attention, she would have curbed her anger. But she wasn't paying attention, and he didn't blame her.

He saw her slap that bastard across the face and heard as she ordered him out of her sight. She was in administrator mode now. Nothing was going to sway her. The restaurant cheering seemed to bring her back down to earth. He saw her look around into the smiling faces of the patrons and then sink back down in her chair. When everyone had gone back to their dinners he saw her cover her face with her hands.

House grimaced. This was going to be bad. He limped over to her table and sat down. She lifted up her head and looked straight at him. He saw the tears pooled in her sapphire eyes.

"Cuddy…"

"What House…what do you want?" Cuddy cursed her voice for cracking.

"Let's get out of here and go someplace else," came his quiet suggestion. "You look like you can use a drink." When he saw the mascara trails down her cheeks he added, "Maybe more than just one."

When Cuddy didn't reply, he stood up and touched her arm. She flinched at the contact but didn't move away. He helped her to her feet and they silently left the restaurant.

On the way out, House saw the hostess watching them. He nodded to her and she smiled slightly. As they passed, he heard her say quietly, "I had to do it." House nodded in understanding and escorted Cuddy out the door and into the chilly night air.


	8. Chapter 8

**Hey everyone!!! So here is Chapter 8!!! Now listen everyone, this chapter took a long time to write considering that I was suffering from a bad case of…writer's block. I could not, for the life of me, figure out how to get from the point that I left off at to the next point. It was quite annoying really. I just wanted to get over this hurdle (the first date) so I can get to the next…parts…so this is the official ending of the night.**

**Oh and this chapter is completely Huddy fluff! So BEWARE!! MUAHAHA! cough And it's not that long either. So please bear with me. Love me and love this chapter as much as the last and I hope to come out with another one soon!**

**OMG and THANK YOU EVERYONE FOR ALL THE MOST AMAZING REVIEWS!!! XD I was sooo excited! Thank you all!**

**Review Replies:**

**Ibreak4CSI**: Oops…so Fanfic cut off the review? That sucks! Of course that guy couldn't be good...if Cuddy fell in love with that guys, how could it be Huddy? Well, I guess it could have been one of those where House tries to win her back from that guy but…naaaa…Edward was too good to be true!

**Gabiroba**: Sweet! Thanks for reviewing!

**Blkdiamond**: Hmmm…that would be quite interesting if that girl came back…hmm…that's a good idea…rubs chin We'll see…XD

**WuHaoNi:** LOL Drunk Cuddy is always funny! OMG The bathroom scene was my favorite part! Glad you liked it! )

**Bubbles:** LOL Yeah it took quite long to write that chapter but did you see how long it was??? LOL Well at least this chapter is coming along sooner than that last one did! I love vacation from school!!! XD

**Mj0621**: Yeah it did take a long time! But here's the next one! Yeah I try to incorporate lines from the real episodes where they fit…Yeah! And you have to update your fic!!! Hope your computer is up and running again soon! Much love.

**LindafromItaly:** Thanks!!! Sorry I haven't replied to your email yet! I will right now! Much love.

**Val'drae:** Thanks! I really want to slap Edward too! Seriously, if a man did that to me I think I would do more than slap him…maybe aim for somewhere lower…XD

**Sinister Scribe:** Cameron bashing is always fun…LOL But unfortunately this chapter isn't as long as the last one…and probably not as long as House's…um…cane…considering that it would think that it would be quite…ahem…long, considering…ACK I'm just going to stop now…LOL

**Huddy24:** Thanks! Here's that update!

**MirPez**: LOL Thanks! I aim to make my banter realistic so if you think it is that I've accomplished my goal! And of course, Huddy banter is the best kind! Thanks for reviewing!!!

**Silvar:** XD But House can't be nice all the time can he? Or he wouldn't be House!

**Axelchick**: XD Thankies very much!!!! Wouldn't it be interesting if House's date came back later on? XD

**Eleanor J:** Yeah I agree. I don't think that she would lose her temper in public either. And I don't think she would have if House hadn't been there telling her exactly what was going to happen…Cuddy seems feisty enough to be a biter, at least that what I think…XD Thanks for reviewing!

**LPlumz:** I totally agree! Huddy does rule!!! And Cameron bashing is always fun and should be incorporated in every Huddy fic! LOL Thanks so much for reviewing!! So glad that you enjoyed it!!!

**Norma:** OMG! Your review made me laugh hysterically!!! Loved it! Thanks so much for the laugh!!!

**Alittlesummerwine:** Thanks so much! And thanks for taking the time to review!

**Ang catalonan:** Hey! LOL yeah every time I imagined House saying that line it made my heart flutter just a little too! XD Thanks for reviewing!

**Starstacey:** Thanks for the review! Yeah I agree I think that there should be more of Cuddy showing her real emotions but the thing is if she ever slapped anyone people would be going ballistic saying that it's not something that a woman in her position of power would do or some crap like that. XD

**PaulaAbdulChica2007:** WOW you were able to read this entire thing in one sitting? Seriously! Sweet! Glad you liked it!!!!

**LadyEmera1d:** XD House and Cuddy? On a date? What are you talking about? Why would you ever think that they're going to go on a date? XD

**Kris the fanficholic:** LOL here's the more that you wanted! XD

**Rylee: **All right! Here it is!! Please don't hurt me! LOL! Thanks for reviewing!!!

**Becks: **Your review was amazing! Loved your revelation and your freak-out was fabulous! Well considering you're on vacation, I'll just have to wait until you get back to tell you about this update! Hope you had fun!!! XD

**Housefangirl35:** XD Glad you liked it! Here's the update!

**HOUSEM.D.FanForever**: XD I definitely plan to finish this…though you might all be dead by the time I do since it's taking so long! LOL Glad you liked it! Thanks for reviewing!

**Isabel Juno:** Well I'm glad both you and Neil liked this chapter! XD Well, the date between House and Cuddy won't be happening for a long time…if it happens at all…MUAHAHAHA! XD Much love.

**Thatinsanehuddylover:** LOL Thanks so much!!! Glad you enjoyed it! And thanks for taking the time to review!!!

**Dcloverz: ** You already know what I thought of YOUR review! glares But thanks for reviewing anyway! And please don't do that again! XD

**Princess-Leasel:** Thanks! Glad you liked it! And thanks of reviewing! XD

**Charlie Winchester: **Thanks for reviewing! So happy that you liked it!! And please update your fics soon!! Can't wait!

**TeresaB**: LOL Thank you soooo much!!! I'm so glad that you enjoyed it so much! That makes me sooo happy!!! XD Well please enjoy this next update!!! Thanks so much again!

**Cath Cuddy:** XD So glad that you liked it! House not being the Sex God was one of the biggest twist yet! LOL That stumped quite a lot of people! ) Well thanks for reviewing and enjoy this chapter!

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CHAPTER 8

_He was…married._

This was the single thought that was running through her mind over and over. _He was happily married…and I…wanted to have a relationship with him._ She had actually considered meeting him again, getting to know him. Edward was…amazing. He was well-mannered, funny, charming, and also tied-down, hitched, married…taken.

She groaned and shuddered. He was also a pig that had a mental problem.

She shouldn't have slapped him though. She should have had more control over her temper. She'd never even slapped House before and God knows how many times he'd riled her up to the point where she wanted to beat him over the head with his own cane. She shuddered again. But it had felt so_ good_.

She was so caught up in her own thoughts, she almost didn't hear House come over to her. _Oh God._ He'd been there the entire time. He'd seen the whole thing. And he had been right too. God, why did she never listen to him until it was too late? After a few moments she looked up at him. She could feel the tears pooled in her eyes, but didn't bother dabbing them. Ruined eye make-up was a tell-tale sign of crying. Maybe he wouldn't notice the tears.

"Cuddy…"

"What House…what do you want?" Damn her voice for cracking.

House looked down. "Let's get out of here and go someplace else," came his tentative answer. "You look like you can use a drink."

She didn't answer him, opting to look at the plate in front of her. Should she go with him? Could she trust him? Of course she could trust him. She'd known him for years and even though he was the biggest jerk that ever walked the planet, she knew that she would be safe with him no matter what.

She heard him stand up but didn't look at him. She felt his hand on her arm, gentle, questioning. She flinched slightly but didn't move away, relishing the contact. He helped her to her feet and she let him lead her out of the restaurant, one hand gripping his cane, the other resting on the small of her back. His uneven gait slowed and she felt his head turn slightly. She didn't bother to look up. His thumb was making small circles on her back and it was proving to be more distracting than she thought it could be. She tried to hold back a moan but the sound made it to her own ears. Heat scored her cheeks and she tried to pull away but found that she couldn't, especially since he had picked up his normal walking speed and they were now out the door.

The cool night air was welcoming after the constricting atmosphere of the restaurant. House hailed a cab and guided her effortlessly to it. She got in and immediately slid to the end of the seat to look out of the window. She was _way_ too close to him. And why the hell was he being so nice?

---- HOUSE M.D. ----

_Why the hell am I being so nice?_

House couldn't wrap his mind around it. He had the strangest feeling running through him but didn't really know what it was. He just knew that whatever it was, it was Cuddy's fault. Her close proximity was really getting to him and her perfume was intoxicating.

As he led her around, his fingers involuntarily started to make small circles on her back. He looked down at her but didn't say anything, panic evident on his face. Panic she didn't see because she seemed to be trying her hardest not to look at him. When she didn't move away or slap him, he kept doing it. After a bit, he heard a muffled moan and looked down just in time to see her face flush. He smiled slightly to himself and walked her over to the taxi, trying to ignore sudden tightness below his belt.

He smirked inwardly when she scrambled into the cab and slid all the way to the far end of the back seat. He slid inside and the cab drove away. House continued to watch her as she looked out the window. She was taking this harder than he thought she would. Sure the guy was a complete pig to pull something like this but hey, there were other men out there. He was pretty sure there was more than _one_ man that wanted to do her. He was sure of it. Positive actually, considering that he was one of them.

Wait…wow. Where did that come from? Since when did he want to do her? _Since you noticed she had a zesty bod, dumb ass._

Right.

"So where are ya headed, mister?" asked the cab driver, looking at House in the rear-view mirror.

House looked up at him. "Jack's on Fifth."

"All righty then-"

"Home."

House's head snapped back to look at Cuddy. "What?"

"Home. I-I just want to go home," she replied.

House frowned at her. "But Cuddy-"

"House if I do end up drinking myself into a drunken stupor, I'd rather do it in the comfort of my own home than at some sleazy bar all right?" she asked icily, her eyes meeting his for a moment.

House stared for a moment more before nodding. House gave the man Cuddy's address and sat back in the seat.

---- HOUSE M.D. ----

She couldn't deal with this right now. All of it. Everything had to stop. The date…House…all of it…it was too much right now.

House was being so nice. It was so weird to see him this way. She hadn't seen this side of him since before the infarction. Once that happened, he completely changed. He went from being "Humorous, Sarcastic, Irritatingly Lovable Greg" to "Sarcastic, Brooding, I-want-to-be-alone House". He pushed everyone out of his life and it had been hard at first to see him that way. Wilson had helped him through it and she knew that he had wanted her to help him get House back on his feet but she couldn't. As much as she had wanted to be there, she knew House still hated her for what she had done to him.

A lone tear rolled down her face and she didn't bother wiping it away, knowing that it would probably get House's attention and at that very moment, she didn't want him psychoanalyzing her.

"Jack's On Fifth."

She looked up abruptly. She hadn't even heard the cab driver's question. When she heard House respond she realized that a bar was the _last_ place that she wanted to go to. But where did she want to go? The hospital? No way. Paperwork was the last thing that she wanted to do and besides, Wilson was there covering for her. He'd want to know how the date went and she couldn't handle telling him. Not today. No there was only one place left to go.

Home. She needed to go straight home. She needed her to curl up in her pajamas and…cry. And who knows, maybe she'd crack out a bottle of wine and have a little party of her own.

"Home."

"What?" She saw House whip around and his eyes met hers.

"Home. I-I just want to go home."

"But Cuddy-"

God why did he always have to argue with her? She was perfectly capable of making decisions on her own. "House, if I do end up drinking myself into a drunken stupor, I'd rather do it in the comfort of my own home than at some sleazy bar, all right?" She braced herself for a sarcastic reply, but it never came. All he did was stare at her for a moment and nod. She turned away and was vaguely aware of him giving the driver her address.

She frowned slightly. He knew her address? By heart? She turned to look at him and raised an eyebrow. He turned and looked at her. "What?"

"You…know my address by heart." It wasn't a question because there was no way he could deny it now.

House couldn't meet her gaze. "Um…yeah."

Cuddy looked at him suspiciously. "And how did you find out my address, Dr. House?"

House didn't answer. He was behaving like a child who had just gotten caught with his hand in the cookie jar.

"You looked at my file didn't you?" Her eyes narrowed slightly. "Didn't you?"

"No…" He looked incredibly uncomfortable.

"Really?" asked Cuddy, turning to sit up completely and look at him. "Then how, may I ask, do you know my address?"

"Would you believe me if I said it was God who came and told me while I was praying yesterday at the synagogue with Wilson?"

"No, I wouldn't. That was quite creative though." She paused for a moment. "I can't believe you looked through my file!" she exclaimed, smacking him on the arm. "That's personal, you jerk!"

"Hey!" he said, clutching his arm. "So I read your file. You must have known at some point that I did. Seriously, how else was I able to take Chase and Foreman there to investigate?"

Cuddy rolled her eyes. "House, you could have asked me what my address was!"

"Um, yeah just like I can ask you what color thong you're wearing or where you keep your vibrator. You would have slapped me across the face…or asked me why I needed to know."

The cab pulled up in front of Cuddy's house and she reached for the door handle. "You know, I really should, but I've done enough slapping for one night and as much as you think I do, I do not get off on causing people pain like you do," she replied icily. She quickly threw open the door stomped away but not before thanking the cab driver.

House turned quickly to the driver and said, "Wait here." He swiftly got out of the cab and hobbled over to Cuddy, who was making her way up her walkway.

Cuddy heard him behind her and quickly turned around, nearly smashing her nose into his chest. She nearly lost her balance as she tottered on her heels and shrieked as she nearly fell backward. His arm shot out and quickly grabbed her and for the second time that night she was thrust into his chest. "What do you want House?" she asked, glaring at him.

"I thought I was supposed to walk to you to your door. It's the gentlemanly thing to do," he said with a smug grin. He was still holding her and she fit perfectly into his arms. She tried not to concentrate on that fact, while that was all House was thinking about.

"House…" She sounded breathless. "I can't get to my door unless you let go of me…" she said, trailing off slightly. She pushed at his chest but her attempts her feeble.

"Are you sure you don't like the feeling of your body pressed against mine?" He leaned down and whispered in her ear, "I'm pretty sure you do. Why don't we give that cab driver a show he'll never forget?"

Cuddy's eyes grew wide at the words. No, they couldn't. His head was coming down towards hers…"House…no. Let go of me!" She pushed him hard and he let go. She stumbled backward and hit the door. She was wide-eyed and breathing heavily. She stood up and searched her purse for her keys. Her hands were shaking slightly as she fidgeted around.

House made a couple of mental notes. Should he or shouldn't he?

Cuddy found her keys and quickly fumbled around some more for the right one before sticking it in the lock. She put her hand on the door handle and pushed it open right as she heard. "Cuddy!"

Against her better judgment, she stopped but didn't turn around. She heard him approach her face felt his hand on her shoulder. He spun her around gently and looked her right in the eye. "Cuddy…I shouldn't be the one doing this. It should have been that asshole of a date but…" He planted a small kiss on her cheek. It was only a moment, but it felt like hours had past before his lips left her cheek.

Her blue eyes were wide and she didn't move a single muscle. "Goodnight Cuddy." House turned around and walked back toward the cab, smirking the entire way.

---- HOUSE M.D. ----

Cuddy didn't move until the cab was out of sight. She brought her hand up to her cheek and lightly touched the spot where House lips had just been. The skin was still tingling. She turned around and strode into her house. She closed the door and leaned against it.

_What was that?_

**----------**

**All right everyone? So what did you think? Yes yes, I know it's short, but bear with me. Writer's block, remember?**

**REVIEW!!!**

**Oh and just an added little note, there is something called the House/Cuddy Fanfiction Awards. They are currently taking nominations for the best Huddy fics in different categories so please go and nominate your favorite fics! I'm not saying to nominate mine, but nominate the ones that you think should be honored! The link is in my profile!**

**OH and over at the Fox forum boards we have started a Huddy Army! XD We are currently battling the Hamerons! Please come over there and join! We are under the Supporting Cast section! Thanks everyone!**

**Much love everyone!**


	9. Chapter 9

**All righty guys! Here is the long awaited chapter nine! Unfortunately this will be the last chapter for a while. I've had barely any time to do anything and have to concentrate on my school work for now. So I just thought I would post this chapter for you all!! OK?**

**Oh and one more thing!!! Thank you to EVERYONE for reviewing! Because of you all, I was able to hit the 200 mark so early on in my fic and that made me so so SOOOOOO HAPPY!!! I mean, you guys have NO idea!!! Thanks all!!!!! MUCH LOVE!!!!**

**Review Replies:**

**HOUSEM.D.FanForever: **Hey! I hope House is a little more snarky in this chapter. At this part, it's a little hard to make him snarky considering this is highlighting the softer side of him and I don't want to make him too big of a jerk…yet. MUAHAHAHAHA! Much love.

**Hell's-sugarrushed-killerqueen:** Hey thanks for the review! Made me feel loved! XD

**PaulaAbdulChica2007: **Glad you liked it! I had to end the night somewhere! And I figured that would bring some much need tension between them! XD

**WuHaoNi:** Woot! Hey! I saw you over there and I signed you up but I haven't seen you since! Where are you? We have a whole ship coalition now where all the other ships have ganged together against the Hamerons and Wuddys! How great is that? XD

**TeresaB: **Ok that was the most amazing review ever! Loved it! And all the loves at the top make me smile! A LOT! Thank you so much!!!! Hope you enjoy this as much as that! XD

**House4cuddy:** Hey! There you are!!! Well here is my update! Where is yours??? XP

**MJ0621: **Heylo! Yes you must update soon! I hope your compy is up and running soon! Here is you huddy fix…at least I hope! XD

**Silvar: **Yep definitely continuing! Lol Hey thanks for reviewing!

**Flying Minion of Doom: **Hey Sergeant Curly!!! Thankies for reviewing! Glad you liked it! Much love.

**RogueButterfly:** hey! I saw you there! Thanks for joining! But I haven't seen you since! Where are you???? I love fluff too so there is bound to be a lot of it here!

**Ibreak4CSI: **LOL! Hey there you are! Usually you're like the first to review! LOL Much love.

**Buba:** Hey! I was wondering where you went! LOL Welcome back to Desperation! JK! Yeah Cameron is WAY too young for him! Did you see the Hameron kiss!!! Bleh! I wanted to throw up just a little! But the complete HUDDY ASS GRAB was flipping amazing!

**Addicted2coffee: **hey! Thankies thankies!!!

**CharlieWinchester: **Lol loved your review!!!! That totally just summed up everything I was feeling!!!

**House's phoenix:** Did you not enjoy camp? Well I'm glad you're back!!!! hugs Thanks for even taking the time to review! Do you just love coming back from somewhere and having just a TON of alerts and other messages! I DO!!! XD

**Kris the fanficholic:** LOL Here ya go!!!! hands you platter with Chapter 9 on it Would you like fries with that?

**Cath Cuddy:** Well here's the update!!! Thanks for reviewing!

**Isabel Juno:** Hey you! I haven't talked to you in such a long time!!! hugs Say hi to Neil from me!!!

**Thevigilante15:** Hey!!!! Glad you thought so!!! Hey when are you updating!! Can't wait! )

**Axelchick:** Hey! The link to the Huddy fanfic awards is in my profile!! Check it out!

**Sinister Scribe:** Yeah I saw her review…Goodness…that's getting really annoying isn't it? But I'm glad that my update made you feel better! And she was TOTALLY referring to my review you know that right? Saying that she has a mental problem? That was me! LOL Is she still doing that? Or is she PMing you now? Much love. hugs

**Val'drae:** Hey teach! What's going on! I haven't heard from you in a while!!! I learn from the best you know!

**ScarlettScribble: **I'm creating awkward tension!!! WOOTNESS! Thanks for reviewing! Much love!

**-heart-EdwardCullen:** LOL thanks!

**Alittlesummerwine:** Hey thanks!!! DEFINITELY! You should come and join the army!! We need some more people! We are totally bringing them down! We have officially joined forces with the Hilsons, Hacys, Chamerons and every other ship that's NOT Wuddy or Hameron!!! Come join us!!

**Princess-Leasel:** Thanks so much!!! And thankies for helping me reach the 200 mark!!!! Much love.

**BlackTippedRose: **Thanks so much!!!! Come on over to the army! The link is in my profile!!!!

**Mariel:** Hey! Thanks for reviewing!!!!!! Hope to talk to you soon!

**Huddyalways: **Thanks for reviewing!!! But hey who is this!!! I have to know! This is totally bothering me!! XD

**Cwerner:** Thanks so much!!!

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CHAPTER 9

Cuddy trudged into her office and collapsed at her desk, letting her head drop into her hands. She sighed. She left work early _one_ time and everything seems to fall apart. One donor called wanting to give money while another wanted to take _back _their donation. The new MRI machine broke (guess who?) and the paper work seemed to be _piling up_. And all morning she had been running from meeting to meeting, putting out little fires along the way. What did Wilson _do_ while she was out?

She sighed. This was the first moment of peace that she'd had all day. She told her assistant to hold everything for twenty minutes, pulled down the shades, and settled comfortably behind her desk. She slipped off her Prada pumps and rested her feet on top of her desk, as House had done so many times before.

House.

She'd been trying to keep him from her mind all day and had been avoiding him too. She didn't know what to do. Why did he kiss her? Ok sure, it wasn't a _real_ kiss, like on the lips or anything, but still…He had _put_ his _mouth_ on her cheek. That still construes as a kiss. Maybe he was just trying to be _gentlemanly_ or something…No way. This is House we're talking about. He couldn't possibly have been trying to be nice…Could he?

She closed her eyes and let the silence envelop her. This was getting so complicated. Goodness…she really need to rest.

She was on the brink of sleep when her door burst open and Stacy came barreling through with Cuddy's assistant close on her heels.

"Mrs. Warner! You can't-" She stopped when she realized that they were both now fully in her boss' office and said boss was staring at them intently. "I'm very sorry Dr. Cuddy, but Mrs. Warner was very…intent on seeing you and I wasn't able to stop her."

Cuddy sighed. "Don't worry, Maria. I've got it. Thank you," Cuddy replied with a nod of her head. Maria nodded quickly and hurried out, remembering to close the door behind her. Cuddy turned slightly and looked at Stacy who was staring at her in anticipation.

"What?"

"I've been trying to call you all weekend," said Stacy, trying hard to keep the annoyance from her voice.

"I wasn't ignoring your calls, if that's what you think. I didn't take anyone's calls," replied Cuddy.

Stacy looked at her strangely but didn't question her. "So…" Cuddy raised an eyebrow. "OK I can't take it anymore! I have to ask. How was your date?"

Cuddy rolled her eyes. She knew that was coming. It was only a matter of time. She sighed. "Well, he wasn't what I expected him to be…at _all_."

Stacy sensed the disappointment in her voice. "Lisa, what happened? Was it that bad?" she asked with concern.

"Bad? The man was _amazing_! He was gorgeous too! He had a pair of light brown eyes that turned my legs to jelly every time he looked at me. He was the perfect gentleman too. He pulled out chairs, held doors, was incredibly funny _and_ the best part was that he was the first man that wasn't incredibly jealous that I made more money than he did."

Stacy grinned. "He sounds too good to be true!"

_He was_, thought Cuddy sadly. She smiled weakly. "Yeah, it was great! Thanks for…setting us up."

"See I _told _you that just because he's called The Sex God, doesn't mean he's an ass." Stacy was still smiling. "So…when's the next date?"

Cuddy's eyes grew wide for a moment, but she quickly masked her surprise. "Um…I'm not…Friday."

"Friday? So soon? Lisa that's great! He must have really liked you! I'm so happy for you!" Stacy stood up. "Well I have to get back to work," she said, tapping on Cuddy's shoe to get her attention. When she was at the door she turned around. "Lisa, I'm really am happy for you." She turned and walked out.

"Hey Stacy, could you just lock the door before you close it?" Stacy nodded. "Thanks."

As the door closed, Cuddy groaned and threw her head back in guilty frustration. She had lied to Stacy. Brilliant. What good did that do? Why couldn't she have just told her the truth? Cuddy put her head in her hands and groaned.

This was how House found her when he burst into her office, without knocking as usual.

Cuddy looked up and was surprised to see House glowering at her. "Your assistant is annoying me."

Cuddy looked behind him and had to hold back her laughter. Maria was standing there, clutching his cane defiantly and seemed to be trying to physically move him out of her office.

"How did you get in? The door was locked."

"Tell her to let go of my cane before I hit her with it and _maybe_ I'll tell you."

Cuddy smiled faintly but turned to Maria. "It's fine, Maria. It shouldn't be too long," she said, giving House a significant look. He pouted. Maria nodded and left.

House watched her leave and turned back to Cuddy taking in everything about her. She was leaning back in her chair, with her legs up on her desk…while wearing a skirt. This woman had no inhibitions did she? House tried to stop himself but he couldn't prevent his eyes from flicking downward to stare at her legs. They were shapely and naturally tan and absolutely gorgeous. He had to resist the urge to run his hands along the length of them.

"What do you want, House? I'm incredibly busy and don't have time to waste for your crap."

House frowned slightly. "Right. Because you're just _drowning_ in paperwork. Why am I even bothering you? Maybe I should just leave," he said, walking over to her desk and sitting in one of the chairs. Cuddy rolled her eyes.

"So…what was Stacy in here about?"

"How do you even know she was in here? Stalker."

"Hey!" he said, clutching his chest. "I'm not a stalker….Ok maybe I am, but that wasn't the answer to the question I asked."

"What we talked about is none of your-"

"She came to ask how the date went, didn't she."

Cuddy frowned at him. "No."

"She did. Considering the fact that she set you up with the son of a bitch, she definitely wanted to know how it went. Plus, she's your best friend…so…" He trailed off and studied Cuddy's face. She fought to make her expression neutral. But he had always been able to see through it. He broke out into an incredulous grin. "You lied."

"No I did-"

"You told her everything went fine. That explains why she seemed so self-satisfied. Why did you lie? Do you not have any respect for yourself?"

Cuddy's eyes narrowed. "Do you think I wanted to lie? I hate lying! And why am I even trying to-" She stopped suddenly. House had cocked his head back slightly and tilted it to the left. "What are you doing?"

"Sorry I got distracted. Black panties look incredibly hot on you, Dr. Cuddy." He gave her a lecherous grin. "Do go on."

Cuddy gasped and quickly dropped her feet to the ground before glaring at him. "My reasons for my actions are _none_ of your business, House."

"So you haven't told anyone what happened?" he asked with the annoying persistence of a five-year-old.

And just like a mother will, she caved. "No. I haven't."

"Why the hell not? You must have wanted to. I know I would have…" Cuddy raised an eyebrow at him. "OK so maybe _I _wouldn't have. But you would have."

Cuddy's glare faltered a bit. Their eyes locked and for a couple of seconds there was silence. She quickly blinked and looked away. "I'm not ready to flaunt my humiliation yet, thank you," she said quietly.

House's eyes grew wide at the admission, but he quickly masked his surprise. Not that she saw it. She wasn't looking at him, nor did she want to. What he wanted most right at that very moment was to make some sarcastic remark to get color back into those cheeks that were so very soft under his lips the other night, but not one snide remark came to him. "I understand," was all he said and Cuddy just nodded. He got up to leave.

"House…you still never told me how…" She looked up to see that he was already gone. "…you got in through the locked door."

_Damn it_, she thought. Now what was she supposed to do? She lied about having a date on Friday to Stacy and House knew about it. He wouldn't tell Stacy would he?

She needed to find a date and fast. But where? She glanced at her computer. Oh no. She was _not_ trying online dating again. No way. But where else would she get one and at such short notice. Cuddy glanced at the computer again and sighed before logging on. The internet would have to do.

Cuddy searched around online for a while until she stumbled across one site that looked a little _less_ raunchy than the other dating sites.

Single Ballroom Dance Lovers (dot) com.

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**Ok so who knows where this is going? XD Ok everyone! Please review! And please please please BE HERE WHEN I GET BACK!!!!!**

**Much love to all!!!**


	10. Chapter 10

**All righty guys. Here is the long awaited chapter. By long-awaited I mean that you guys had to wait long for it…XD Anyway sorry you guys had to wait for so long. RL was a bitch but it's all good. So here I am and here's the chapter. But first, as always, the review replies.**

**Review replies:**

**HOUSEM.D.FanForever:** Thank you as always for your reviews! They make me smile!

**Cwerner: **Glad you liked it! Enjoy!

**Ibreak4CSI:** Sweet! Thank you for being such a devout follower! LOL Glad you enjoyed it and as always, it made me happy to see your review!

**Mariel: **Yeah that last chapter was quite short but hopefully this makes up for it a little…

**TeresaB:** You never cease to make me laugh! I love seeing your reviews. Thank you so much for reviewing! OMG…you write the most amazing reviews! Thank you again! Much love!

**Thevigilante15:** There you are!!! Hey! Glad you liked it!

**AxelChick:** Thank you so much!!!

**PaulaAbdulChica2007:** Huddy lovin? That'll come eventually but first we have to get through all the angst and drama…XD Huddy lovin is like the light at the end of the tunnel! XD

**RogueButterfly:** You most definitely should stop by the army thread soon. Gabiroba, Ang Catalonan, MJ0621, and some other fanficians are over there as well! You should come talk to us! Glad you liked the chapter!

**House's phoenix:** Well Cuddy definitely visits sites like that and we know that from _Insensitive (3.14)_. Glad you enjoyed it though and glad you had fun at camp!

**Wolf Maid: **Hello there! Haven't seen you around these parts before. LOL Welcome to my story! Glad you like it! I agree, House and Cuddy are definitely made for each other! XD

**Eleanor J.: **Hey there! Yeah it is right? Gosh…I could totally see him doing that too! LOL Thanks for reviewing!

**Huddytheultimate: **LOL in this fic, though, Stacy is totally OOC…oh well. I can't get them all right can I? Glad you liked it! Thanks for reviewing!

**Buba:** LOL Glad you liked it! Thanks for the reviewing…House does do some sleazy things like that doesn't he? But I think that's what makes House, House and I love him for it! LOL

**MJ:** Your review made me smile! Hey! I hope you get your USB drive back soon!

**Sinister scribe: **hugs You're the best! Love ya! But I'm "back"!!!!! How've you been? Glad she's not bothering you anymore! Please update your fics soon! Can't wait! Much love, sistah!

**Kris the fanficholic:** lol I have a happy dance too! Except my friends call it my happy monkey dance. LOL Glad you like it and at least know what it's leading up to! LOL

**Spuffyshipper: **Hello there. Welcome! Glad you liked my fic! I didn't see the entire movie but I did see some of the scenes with Sela. I love her so much! She's so pretty, especially for her age! Thanks for reviewing!

**Isabel Juno:** Hey! Ok ok, Lo está aquí. I hope you like it!

**Ashlee-huddy-24:** Thanks for reviewing!

**Beck: **Hey there! Love ya too! I probably shouldn't call you considering it's relatively late at night right now but I'll tell ya at school! Thanks for reviewing! Love ya!

**Housefangirl35:** I'm not sure whether this was a good review or not…o.O I'm not really sure what you meant by what you said.

**Alittlesummerwine:** Thanks for sticking with me! Enjoy!

**Cath Cuddy:** Thanks! Here's the chappy! Enjoy!

**Panfriedcatfish: **Haven't seen you around her before! Welcome! Thanks for reviewing!

**Charlie Winchester:** LOL You're review made me laugh! Thanks for it though! Much love.

**Buba: **Wow…how did you leave two reviews? I'm quite confused…But hey! Thanks anyway! LOL

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CHAPTER 10

As soon as House left Cuddy's office, he headed back to his own. He needed a place to simmer in peace. When he reached his sanctuary, he realized with something akin to despair that all the walls were glass. Damn it. _Whose bright idea was it to make glass walls? That asshole._ House quickly looked around and finally saw his life-saver.

The balcony. Perfect.

Bright...full of oxygen…just what he needed. He burst through the doors and just stood there for a moment, leaning on the ledge, watching the people walking below. Why would she lie to Stacy? He sighed. If only he had water balloons. That would have made his day much, much better. He was about to go back inside to see if there was a box of latex gloves he could steal when he nearly walked into Wilson.

"Wow…how did you do that?"

"House! I've been looking everywhere for your! Where have you been?" asked Wilson, only slightly annoyed. He really had been looking for House everywhere.

"Your mom's house. A little afternoon delight."

Wilson grimaced. "That's…fairly disgusting."

"Tell _her _that."

Wilson stepped back a little. "Um…anyway…changing the subject now. How was your date on Friday?"

House's eyes narrowed. "Yeah…about that." He limped over to Wilson and smacked him over the head.

"Ow! What was that for? It wasn't good?"

"How could you expect me to have a good time with _that_ woman?" House tried hard to keep his cool but it was becoming increasingly hard with each question Wilson asked.

_Oh…crap,_ thought Wilson. _I really did set him up with Cuddy. Shit._

"Well…I uh…thought you could use some fun…"

"Fun? Jimmy boy, I like to have my own share of fun but going on dates with random chicks that look like Cameron and are old enough to be my daughter is a little _too _pedophile-ish for me."

Wilson frowned. "I know she's young, but she doesn't seem _that_ young, no offense to her, of course. I think you're exaggerating just a bit…"

Now it was House's turn to frown. "What are you talking about? Why would you care if you insulted her or not?"

"Well she's my friend and I wouldn't want her thinking that I said that she was old. She'd get mad at me if she found out and knowing you, you'd let it slip to her that I said it and she'd come and hunt me down. And besides, that's not _exactly_ what I said."

House's eyes nearly bugged out of his head. "She's a friend of yours?"

Wilson looked at him awkwardly. "Um…yeah. Duh. She's your friend too. Don't even deny it."

"Oh Jimmy. Relationship not work out so well? What makes you think that I wanted your cast off?"

"Cast off? Now what are _you_ talking about? I've never dated her before in my life! If anything, she's _your _cast off."

"Her?" House stared incredulously at Wilson. "Are you high?"

"How can you be asking _me_ that question?"

"That's the only plausible explanation for you thinking that I'd ever date a girl as young as Amy was. She was freaking fresh out of med school!" House roared.

"J-just out of med school?"

"Yeah." House rubbed a hand over his face. Wilson just stood there in obvious horror. House just rolled his eyes. "I'm going inside." Wilson followed meekly behind.

House made his way over to his comfy chair and clutched his thigh before raising his leg and resting it on the ottoman. After a moment he looked at Wilson. "How dense are you?"

"Sorry about that. I…never mind. So you were saying?"

"What?"

"Nothing. What were you saying about her being out of med school?"

House glanced at him suspiciously. "She wanted to come work for me, not that she knew that I was me. Wilson, what the hell is wrong with you?"

Wilson sighed. "I thought you were talking about Cuddy."

House scrunched up his nose and put his finger on his chin in a look of thought. "Huh…yeah…because she looks_ just_ like Cameron."

"Well Cuddy told me yesterday that she was going on a date and it ended up being at the same restaurant you were and—"

"You didn't bother telling me? What kind of friend are you?" asked House feigning anger. He didn't actually care, considering he'd already known. But Wilson didn't need to know that.

"Well I didn't want you to freak out—," said Wilson. House opened his mouth as if to protest but Wilson stopped him and continued. "like you did, and bail out on the date, especially if it _was_ Cuddy."

House thought for a moment. "So you thought I went on a date with Cuddy."

"Um…basically, yeah."

"Wilson, the fact that I _didn't_ do her should have tipped you off."

"You would have done Cuddy, had she let you, of course."

"Wilson, do you actually think that I would pass up a chance at juggling the fine, fine funbags of Dr. McHotBod?"

Wilson chuckled. "Started watching Grey's, I see."

"Yeah the L-Word just wasn't doing it for me. And besides, McDreamy is one fine piece of ass."

Wilson rolled his eyes just as his beeper went off. "Well speaking of…er…Dr.McHotBod, she's paging us. We have to get down to the ER. There was some major accident. People are pouring in and they're short-staffed."

House sighed heavily. "But Jimmy!" he whined, "My leg hurts!"

"Then go tell mommy, or take some Vicodin and suck it up."

---- HOUSE M.D. ----

Over the next couple of days, House and his team were forced to work in the ER and the clinic. No new cases arose and House had nearly gone insane with boredom. After trying to avoid the clinic for as long as possible, he actually started treating patients because he had nothing better to do. He would have taken _any_ case that came his way.

Luckily one did.

---- HOUSE M.D. ----

House barged into Cuddy's office, desperately trying to keep the smile off of his face. He'd found a case! He would have jumped for joy if it wasn't for the incredible pain in his thigh.

"Need to bail on the ER," he said, waving the file in his hand. "Gotta case." House stopped walking towards her desk and frowned. "Why are you wearing perfume?"

Cuddy ignored his last statement and put on a look of utter boredom. "Is this a real case or one of those imaginary cases that happen when you're bored?"

"CIPA" he replied simply.

Cuddy frowned. "CIPA is a diagnosis. Diagnoses happen at the end of cases."

"She's got no idea what's going on in her body. There's bound to be something wrong."

Cuddy looked at him disbelievingly. "In other words, she could be perfectly healthy but you're curious about someone who can't feel pain because you always feel pain so you want to go exploring."

House sighed. "She was in a car accident. She needs x-rays, blood tests, EEGs, nerve biopsy…" He trailed off as he came and sat in a chair in front of her desk. "I also note that although snow was coming down in sheets this morning, you left your hat at home and used earmuffs."

Cuddy frowned. "Do your tests except for the—"

House interrupted her. "So while everyone else was just worried about getting in, you were concerned with hat head." Cuddy closed her mouth and looked at him defiantly. But he saw right through it for the second time that week. "Blind dates are never a good idea," he said in a tone laced with disapproval. Cuddy nodded slightly expecting him to drop it. But it was House. He never dropped anything. He pointed at her scarf hanging on the coat rack by the door. "The only reason to wear a scarf like that is as a beacon to identify you in a crowd."

Cuddy looked at him incredulously and when she spoke she sounded slightly angry. "Do your tests. Except for the nerve biopsy."

"I need the nerve biopsy."

"You risk paralyzing her.

"If it's neurological—"

"You have no evidence of that," Cuddy said, interrupting him.

"Uh…" House paused and thought for a moment, "She…tripped."

Cuddy was finally bored and fed up with him and his games. "Do you have any evidence other than the fact that a typically clumsy CIPA patient tripped on an icy day?" House bit his lip and shook his head no. "If the EEG reveals a problem, we can talk then." Her tone was that of a dismissal. House took the hint. But she wasn't going to get the last word.

When he reached the door, "Could have left the scarf at home and just told him you would be wearing a look of desperation," he said nastily and walked out.

---- HOUSE M.D. ----

Cuddy stared at the door long after House was out of sight. He was right. He was completely right…as always. She was acting like a desperate, needy wench. Cuddy put her head in her hands and groaned. This was annoying. Count on House to cause a giant emotional upheaval every time she talked to him.

---- HOUSE M.D. ----

House trudged back to his office, his mood having taken a drastic turn for the worse. What the hell was she doing going on _another _blind date? Didn't she learn from the first one?

House glared at his thinking ball sitting innocently on his desk. He just wanted to…chuck it at someone.

She was being so stupid, and one thing Cuddy definitely wasn't was stupid. Wait a minute…why did he even care this much? He didn't like Cuddy…did he? He shouldn't care this much…should he? Sure she was his friend…one of his only friends…but she didn't need to know that. Maybe he really did have feelings for Cuddy. Maybe he really was over Stacy.

House smiled slightly at the thought. This was good…well not really. But it was better than harboring feelings for a woman who had a husband and probably wouldn't leave him for a crippled drug-addict who already threw her out of his life once.

House sighed again. Count on Cuddy to cause a giant emotional upheaval every time they talked. But he couldn't help but think, '_What's going to happen this time to her?'_ This guy could be a jerk-off or a rapist or something, and House wouldn't be there to stop it…to save her.

He thought for a moment. Or maybe he _could_ be there…He grinned and leaned back in his chair. His smile widened as his plan took shape. This had the makings of a very interesting night.

---- HOUSE M.D. ----

Cuddy walked briskly down the sidewalk, carefully avoiding the random ice patches that seemed to have appeared overnight. The week had gone from pleasantly cool to freezing and expectant of snow in a matter of days.

She adjusted the scarf more securely around her neck. She had seriously considered not wearing the scarf after what House had said. She didn't want to look desperate, even though the last time she'd had sex with someone was about three months earlier with a man she'd met at her sister's wedding. She was in need of a decent lay and hopefully if this man was nice enough and she was attracted to him, she might get it. And besides it was freezing outside and the scarf was keeping her warm. Screw House and his theories.

Cuddy stopped outside of Joe's Coffee House, a little shop just down the block from the hospital that served the best coffee in Princeton. Sure, it wasn't the greatest place for a dinner date, but she didn't know where else to choose that was walking distance from the hospital. The diner was nicer, but she really wasn't that hungry. She took a deep breath and walked into the shop.

---- HOUSE M.D. ----

"So what does a Dean of Medicine do?"

Cuddy looked at him and took in his appearance. Don. That's what his name was. He was nice enough. He was dressed nicely too, though he seemed a little awkward. But that was ok. He was interesting and cute in a dorky sort of way. Maybe this date wouldn't be so bad.

"Oh, can we please not talk about that?" Cuddy asked, grimacing slightly, "We'll talk about anything else. I'm just trying to get away from work."

"Metaphorically," replied Don, leaning back in his chair and staring at Cuddy. She gave him a confused look. "Because geographically, a coffee place right around the corner from the hospital probably isn't the farthest you could get," he said with a slight smile.

"Well the snow…" she said, gesturing out the front window of the shop.

"The roads are clearing…but it's a good place to retreat from." Cuddy smiled at that and sipped her coffee. Don leaned in slightly. "You usually expect your dates to go wrong?"

"Experience has taught me to have an escape route."

"Well…low expectations. That's in my favor!" Don said with a smile. Cuddy laughed and put her chin in her hand. He definitely had a sense of humor and didn't seem at all offended when he figured out her real reason for meeting so close to the hospital. This was good.

Cuddy saw something move out of the corner of her eye and slowly she looked out the window. House was standing there and suspiciously looking inside. Cuddy's face slowly contorted into a look of horror. _Oh no, no, no. House…_

---- HOUSE M.D. ----

House slipped out of the elevator of PPTH and entered the darkened clinic. Surprisingly, Cuddy's office was dark was well. Of course it was. She was on a date. She wasn't working late tonight. House strode up to her door and jiggled the handle. Locked. House smirked. He slipped his hand into his pocket and pulled out the one thing that he kept with him at all times besides his Vicodin…a key. Specifically a key to Cuddy's office. It was one of the most useful things he'd ever stolen.

He made his way into her office and searched her desk. He needed something…anything to give him a hint as to where she went…He opened the top drawer of her desk and saw her keys. Her _car _keys. She went without her car? Well that narrowed it down.

And considering that he'd watched her down a huge mesclunsalad hours before, she couldn't possibly be hungry enough to go to the diner. So the only place she could be was Joe's Coffee House down the block. It was the only other possible place to go on a date.

He smiled. He was a genius.

House wandered down the block bundled in a long coat and scarf, carrying his alibi. When he reached his destination, he peered into the window and saw Cuddy sitting there with a some man. She seemed to be fine. She was laughing and smiling and seemed to be enjoying herself. House felt a little bubble of jealousy explode inside him. But that's how her date started off last time too. She could still get hurt.

He saw Cuddy look out the window and spot him. Well, so much for surprising her. But what surprised _him_ was the look of horror that was now splayed across her features. House glared slightly and made his way into the shop. She'd thank him later.

---- HOUSE M.D. ----

Don saw her face and looked out the window as well, seeing the sinister man standing there. Cuddy's voice brought his attention back to her. "Whatever happens, I need you to understand that there are certain aspects of my life I'm not happy about."

The bell over the door and a gust of cold air signaled House's entrance. She heard him hobble over to them.

"Need the nerve biopsy," was all he said.

"And you had to come here _personally_ to tell me that." It was a statement, not a question. "And how did you even know I was here?"

House sat on the ledge next to them. "To bring the file. And this is the most non-committal spot in walking distance." Cuddy's brow furrowed in confusion. _How did he know I walk-_ "You left your car keys in your desk," he said, answering her mental question. Cuddy's eyes widened in realization and she glared at him. She opened up the file. House just smiled slightly and turned to her date. "Greg House," he said enthusiastically, putting out his hand. "You two must've met online. Either that, or you've got a friend that secretly hates you."

"Uh…Don Harrick" replied her date, shaking House's outstretched hand. "Yeah, we connected through SingleBallroomDanceLovers (dot) com," he replied only semi-awkwardly.

Cuddy's eyes widened in horror when she heard Don's confession. She slowly raised the file so that it completely covered her flushed cheeks. House smiled and tried to hold in his laughter.

"Why…would you volunteer that information?" he asked Don, amusement dripping from his voice.

"Why would I hide it?" asked Don, with confusion.

House turned to Cuddy. "You didn't tell him that everything he said would be held against you?" Cuddy grimaced and House turned back to Don. "So what line of work are you in?"

"Auto maintenance…changing oil and filters."

"Right…my place over charges…can't trust anything you guys say." Don chuckled. "So, where're you located?"

"In fourteen states. I own Eastern Lube."

Before House could say anything else, Cuddy interfered. She asked him some questions which House answered promptly and efficiently. The conversed back and forth for a few minutes, while Don sat there watching Cuddy talk, taking everything about her. She looked so engrossed in the conversation, nothing else in the world could have possibly interrupted them. _Wow_, he thought.

"Fine, House. Do it. But make sure you get the patient's consent first."

House looked as if he wanted to protest, but just nodded. He knew there was no way he could possibly stay any longer. He hopped down off the ledge and was about to leave but leaned over to Cuddy at the last minute. He was inches a way from her face and seemed like he was going to whisper to her.

Yelling, "He seems a lot nicer than that other one from WiccaNeedsADaddyFigure(dot)com."

Cuddy jumped slightly and glared at House as he grabbed her cookie with a big smile and left the shop.

House walked back to the hospital imagining Cuddy trying to explain that one to Dan…Drew…whatever his name was. He laughed, the sound of his voice echoing down the empty street.

Phase one of "Saving McHotBod" was complete.

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**Well…that was chapter 10. Please bear with me. I finally know where I'm going so hopefully chapter 11 should be up soon. There wasn't too much of my original writing because I had to incorporate the scene from 3.14 and the beginning of 11 will have that too but after that the rest of the chapter will be all me. XD**

**Please review! I love you guys so much! You're the best reviewers and readers ever! Thanks so much!!!! hugs everyone and gives them all cookies **


	11. Chapter 11

**All righty guys! I'm BAAAACK!!!!! Honey! I'm HOME!!! Did ya guys miss me? OK below are a couple of the review replies to my anonymous readers. The rest of you should have received my review reply already! **

**Thank you to ibreak4CSI, thevigilante15, samanthaon, TeresaB, Huddytheultimate, Raya Daydreamer, Gaby, HOUSEM.D.FanForever, sinister scribe, Eleanor J, addicted2coffee, Smirk. Swagger. Slytherin, Housefangirl35, kita, Huddyalways-24-BK-MA, CathCuddy, SupportSeverusSnape, Mariel, Becks, AxelChick, Charlie Winchester, Buba, Wolf Maid, MJ, cwerner, dcloverz, nirky, LindafromItaly, thyla, AngelEyes2332, and SavvyKitten. Your reviews made me so happy!**

**Kita: **So glad you enjoyed it!!! Keep on reading! And I hope to talk to you soon! We haven't spoken in forever!

**Becks: **Gracias mi amiga mejor! Love ya!

**Buba: **Oooh!!! Well now I have one _extra_ review! LMAO So it's all good! And I'm glad you liked the Insensitive parts. I figured they fit in with my storyline so better put them in because it actually helps me with my plotline! XD Sweet! See, I always love reading some of the Houseisms because I usually miss jokes when I see the eppie! XD Glad I could help!

**Thyla: **Hey there! Here's that update that you've been poking me for! Sorry it took so long! RL has been getting in the way of EVERYTHING! ACK!!! But here it is! Enjoy!

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CHAPTER 11

Cuddy turned on the light and stepped into her home with Don close on her heels. "Wow. Great house."

Cuddy smiled. "Thanks."

He walked around her living room, taking in everything. She had a sea green sofa and easy chair covered in throws of various colors. Bookshelves that lined the walls were filled with books that varied from art and music genres to medical journals and textbooks. A fireplace in the corner completed the room and gave it a nice homey, cozy feel. He walked around the small glass coffee table to the fireplace. On the mantel was a row of green…things…

He turned to her with a questioning look and gestured to them. Cuddy grinned slightly. "I collect green…glass, I guess you could say." Don turned to look at them again and saw that they were indeed all glass. Green plates, vases, ashtrays, glasses…it was an interesting sight and one collection he had never encountered before.

"That's really interesting. I like them a lot."

Cuddy smiled. "Well, just make yourself at home and I'll go get us some wine." Don nodded and she sauntered down the hallway. He watched her leave before turning back and glancing around the room. He started a fire in the fireplace and sat down on the sofa before taking off his shoes. He relaxed against the couch and sighed. Lisa was, in one word, amazing. She was beautiful, funny, successful…Don hesitated. But for some reason, she didn't seem to be as interested in him as he was in her. She seemed to be holding herself back for some unknown reason…

Cuddy padded quietly into the room holding two wine glasses in one hand and a bottle of red wine in the other. "Well, here we are. Sorry I took so long. Hospital phoned. I just had a quick fire to put out. Nothing big, thank goodness." Don quickly snapped to attention and gave her a small smile. He hadn't even heard the phone ring. 'She must have it on vibrate,' he concluded. Cuddy poured the wine into both glasses, handed him one and sat down next to him. "Tonight was…very nice, Don."

Don just smiled and took a sip of his wine. "I agree. I really enjoyed talking to you. You're not only beautiful, but intelligent as well, a quality I look for in a woman."

Cuddy smiled seductively and shifted slightly closer to him and leaned in slowly, as did he. Their faces were mere inches apart, breath mingling…Cuddy slowly closed her eyes. _This is it,_ she thought. Their lips _almost_ touched, but their intimate moment was interrupted by a loud knocking at her door.

Cuddy released the breath she had been holding and growled slightly. Don looked away, his face tinted pink.

She got up and smoothed down her skirt. "I'll be right back." Don nodded and Cuddy had to use every ounce of restraint she had to stop herself from stomping over to the door. She peeked through the peephole and nearly screamed in frustration.

She yanked open the door to see House standing there, looking as smug as ever. A blast of icy wind made her night complete. She hugged herself to keep warm while she glared at him. "Noooooo…" she moaned.

"Need a consult."

"I already okayed your nerve biopsy," replied Cuddy in exasperation. She just wanted him gone.

"Need an endocrinologist," he replied simply. His casual mood was getting on her nerves.

"Bennet's on call!"

"Won't pick up. His cell phone must be broken."

"Mine's working!"

House just smiled. "Had to give you the file."

Cuddy just glared at him. She quickly snatched the file from his hands, the desire to help a patient overriding the overwhelming desire to beat him with his cane. "I'm assuming you're thinking Thyroid Storm. Have you done a hormone panel?"

"Normal. TSH was on the low side." House frowned slightly. "Is that a cheery fire I hear crackling nearby?" he asked suspiciously.

Cuddy looked up briefly. "NO. What about CPK enzymes?"

"Elevated. 275. Usually people light fires for themselves…but then they don't deny it." Cuddy didn't reply, but continued to examine the file. His jaw dropped open. "He's _here_?" he asked, incredulously.

Cuddy looked up and shoved the file back into his hands. "CPK isn't high enough. Potassium's what you'd expect because of the bronchodilators." She gave him a defiant look. She was not going to give in. However, she made the mistake of moving her arms away from her chest.

House's eyes grew wide and he looked up at the sky. "Oh my God…You're not wearing a bra."

"It's not Thyroid Storm."

"You just met him!"

"I LIKE HIM! And I like sex! Do I have to stitch a letter on my tops?" She tried to keep her voice down but it was getting increasingly harder to do that with him purposely baiting her.

"No. It might be worth taking an ad in the local paper."

Cuddy frowned at him slightly. What was going on here? Why was he being like this? Sure he was there when her first date went badly, and sure this was a rebound date, but it was going _well_. Don was genuine. House interrogated him. He should know that Don doesn't seem like the guy who would screw a girl over. So what was his deal? Cuddy examined his face, looking for a let, a twitch of the lip, a blink of an eye…something to let her know what was really going on.

And then she saw it. A flicker of worry and concern flit behind his eyes.

Cuddy slowly grinned and stuck her head back into the house to make sure that Don wasn't creeping up on her. She turned back around and stepped outside, right up to House, inches away from him. So close she could feel the warmth radiating off of him. "Do you like me, House?"

House was completely taken aback. W-w-How did they get to this? Where did this come from? To keep himself from stuttering like an idiot he stayed silent.

"I was on the phone with Bennet fifteen minutes ago. His cell phone's working. _Your_ MO is to avoid me at all costs. And suddenly you need my input on _every_ move you make. I can only assume it's because I'm on a date."

House looked away. Excuse time. "When we met I–"

"You noticed he was a Shriner from the way he parted his hair. You noticed he was a momma's boy from the way he blinked his left eye. I'm not interested. I'm not impressed. There are only two reasons anyone would want to screw with me tonight. Either they're an altruistic, decent person who is worried about my well-being…" She paused and gave him a 'Yeah right' look, "Or…they want me for themself."

This was it. She was giving him the perfect opportunity to express his feeling for her. All he had to say was "Cuddy, you're right. I like you." But wait…did he like her? Was that what this was? No…no way. He was sabotaging her date because he wanted to protect her…because he didn't want to see her hurt again…right? And he only cared about her because they were friends…right? Just like Wilson would have done.

"You left out the third option: Evil bastard that just wants to mess with other people's happiness."

He couldn't do it. Not now, at least. Not while there was another man inside her house waiting for her. He'd wait. Once he cleared his head.

Cuddy just nodded slightly and smiled. She'd let him take his time. She walked back inside. "Good night, House." She closed the door, leaned back against it and sighed. Well, that wasn't the encounter she had been expecting.

---- HOUSE M.D. ----

Don stood just by the entryway to the living room. From there he could just make out what they were saying. He felt like a spy. A bad spy, but still a spy. All he wanted to know, he told himself, was who was at the door. He heard her moan 'no' and knew immediately that it was that man that he'd met in the coffee shop. House or something. He should have turned around, having heard what he wanted to know, but something made him stay.

As he listened, he heard House begin to question her and she deftly avoided each personal question by bringing him back to task about his patient. _Nice._

But then he heard her quick outburst. "I like him. And I like sex…" He didn't catch the rest, but that's all he needed to hear. Was that what this was for? Sex? That's all she wanted? She wasn't looking for a relationship? He sighed. He knew there was something different about her.

He almost didn't listen to the rest but then he heard her ask "Do you like me, House?" and he knew. This was what it was. She had feelings for House. Against his better judgment, he stayed a bit longer. Wait…what about him being a Shriner? _And I'm a momma's boy? What?_

He shook his head. He didn't need to stay here. And she obviously didn't like him like he liked her. He was right. Oh well. He heard the door slam and quickly scrambled back to the sofa. He began putting on his shoes when she walked in.

---- HOUSE M.D. ----

"We won't be bothered again." Cuddy walked into the room and saw Don putting on his shoes. She frowned slightly, looking utterly confused. Why was he leaving?

Don smiled slightly. "It's getting late. I should go."

"Why?"

He stood up and walked over to her. "Uh…I part my hair on the left and I'm a Shriner?"

Cuddy's eyes widened and a blush crept up her neck and pinked her face. She quickly covered her face with her hands. "Oh…You heard the conversation…" Don made a noise of confirmation. Cuddy looked up at him quickly. "I'm not interested in him."

"I don't blame you."

"I only said those things so he wouldn't come back."

Don stared into her eyes for a moment before taking a deep breath. "I don't really care about my job. I do it well, I provide a service, but my goal was always to make enough money to do the things I really like: music…travel…"

Cuddy gave him a big cheesy grin. "I like those things too!"

Don grimaced a little. "You like them but they're not really important to you. I don't know whether it's House, your job, or…you just…thrive on conflict." He paused for a moment. "You should hear yourself when you're talking to him. Nothing else it the world's going on. You're focused, confident, compelling." He picked up his jacket and put it on. "Don't…take this the wrong way but…I'd like to go out with _that_ woman."

Cuddy smiled tiredly. "I can get her on the phone."

Don smiled again before kissing her on the cheek and letting himself out.

---- HOUSE M.D. ----

House stood there a moment after the door closed. He seriously considered banging on the door again but thought better of it. He ambled down her front steps and made his way to his bike that was parked a few houses down. _And now we wait_…

He sat on it and swallowed to Vicodin. Thankfully, he didn't have to wait long. His leg probably wouldn't have held up. He watched as Eastern Lube walked down her walkway and got into his car and drove past him. As it went by, House waved good-bye and gave Don a look of triumph. He saw Don just smile knowingly and drive away.

Mission "Saving McHotBod" was complete. Now to collect his reward.

---- HOUSE M.D. ----

As soon as Don had left, Cuddy downed her glass of wine and Don's before pouring another one and quickly downing it too. She sighed and looked around the room, realizing that it was the _last_ place she wanted to be at that moment. She turned off the light and went to her bedroom, changed into a pink satin long-sleeve shirt and pant pajama set and slid between the covers of her bed. She didn't even bother showering. She'd do it in the morning. Right now, she was just…drained.

Drained of _everything_. The same song kept playing through her head. _One is the loneliest number…_

How did her night end that way? _Why_ did House have to come and ruin her _perfectly_ good date? She was going get laid! Finally! And he had to come and ruin it!

Cuddy groaned and threw her head back against her pillows. When had she become this? A person who resorted to _online dating services_ to get laid? When had she stooped so low? Maybe it was a good thing House came and interrupted it.

_Oh my God! What am I thinking? What House did was rude and annoying and completely screwed me over!_

Maybe Don was right. Maybe she _did _have feelings for House. Cuddy's eyes widened at the realization. No, she couldn't. She just thrived on conflict. That's what it was.

Cuddy glared at the ceiling. Thrived on conflict? Seriously?

"Oh God…I do like him, don't I?" she said aloud.

"Well, that's a start."

Cuddy shot up in her bed to see House standing in her doorway. "What the hell are you doing here? How the hell did you get _in_ here?"

House just smiled. "You should keep your spare key somewhere else. Under the pot is _so _last year." Cuddy was speechless so House continued. "So where's Dan?"

"Don. And he left."

"Awww…that's too bad. He seemed like a nice guy."

Cuddy glared at him, but he just smirked at her. "I _know_ he's a nice guy! That's why I invited him back to my house in the first place!"

House shrugged. "Eh, it would never have lasted. You aren't into any of the things he's into. I mean seriously, I can't see _you_ getting down and dirty in the mud to fix a car…maybe to get off…but not for a car."

Cuddy bit back a grin and settled for another glare. She got up from the bed and came to stand directly in front of him. In the moonlight, he took in her appearance. Her satin pajamas were form-fitting, of course, which he enjoyed immensely, and her hair was a little messy from tossing and turning in bed but it made her look…adorable, was the only word he could come up with.

"You still haven't answered my question."

House realized he'd just been staring at her in silence. "Um…well, I wanted to see, first hand, what the Dean of Medicine wore to bed. Wilson and I have been taking bets. He said cotton. I said satin. Looks like I won."

"It does look that way, doesn't it? Lucky I chose to wear this tonight, of all nights. Now that you've found out what you wanted, can you leave?"

"No," he replied simply and stepped closer to her.

"No?" Cuddy rolled her eyes. She didn't have the patience to deal with him and the three glasses of wine she had downed seemed to be kicking in. Warmth flooded her veins but she wasn't exactly positive whether it was from the wine or from the fact that he was drawing nearer and nearer to her with each long stride.

"No. I had a mission. I completed the mission. Now I want my reward."

Cuddy's heart began to beat faster. "Oh really…well can you just get your reward and leave so that I can go to bed?"

House shrugged. "If you say so." He slowly limped toward her. With each step he took forward, she took a step back. Well, that was until her back hit the wall. Cuddy's heart began to beat rapidly.

"W-What are you doing?" she asked, cursing her shaking voice. He just smiled and crept closer.

Before Cuddy could even think, House's hand encircled her wrist and pulled her toward him. "HOU–" She crashed into his chest, his mouth coming down on hers. Cuddy's gasped in surprise and he took the chance to deepen the kiss, his tongue sliding against hers in deep, long strokes. For a moment she thought to resist. This was _House_. _Kissing her_. She began to panic and started pushing his chest to get him off her. But House didn't stop, his hand wrapping around her waist. His fingers drew small, light circles on her hip and soon her attempts to push him off her grew feeble and then ceased altogether. The sweet magnetism of the kiss had taken over and her eyes fluttered closed.

_Damn he's a good kisser_, was her last coherent thought as the sheets of her bed caressed her now bare legs.

**--------------------------------**

**Ok my lovelies, there it is! Chapter 11 if officially finished::sigh:: FINALLY::giggles:: Ok so I'm hoping I'll get another chapter up before I go to India on vacation for 6 weeks! That'll be from July 18****th**** to August 25****th****. So if I don't get another chapter up before then, I'll be doing a lot of writing when I'm so I should update when I get back! All righty? And also during that time, I doubt I'll have much access to a computer, let alone internet so if I don't read your updates, it's because I was away you'll be receiving my reviews soon!**

**Also, if you haven't already, please read a new story that I posted that I'm co-writing with angcatalonan called Beauty and the Snark! I know a lot of you have read it already (thanks for the reviews!) but guys, please go read it! It would mean a lot to both of us! Thanks!**

**One last note, over on the Fox Boards, we have a Huddy discussion board so please come and talk to us over there! We are very welcoming and talk to basically everyone except for Huddy/Cuddy haters! The link to the thread is in my profile!**

**So as always, please review! Love you all! More cookies anyone? I know MJ will! XD **


	12. Chapter 12

**All righty then everyone. Here is chapter 12! I hope you all like it! **

**Thanks to Shikabane-Mai, Eleanor J., SupportSeverusSnape, MJ, PaulaAbdulChica2007, Kitty, Smirk. Swagger. Slytherin, Huddytheultimate, Mariel, cwerner, Izzy (and Neil), Inu-midoriko, Gaby, Charlie Winchester, ibreak4CSI, dcloverz, Lylirium, HOUSEM.D.FanForever, HouseFangirl35, TeresaB, and Huddyalways-24-BK-MA!!**

**Where's Thyla::sniffles:: XD And Sinister scribe? Donde están mis chicas?**

**Ooh special thanks to SavvyKitten because without her nagging and poking and ability to bring it up in every conversation, I would not have gotten this out before I left! Love ya, Kitty! XD Oh and happy birthday again!! Here's your present!**

**Enjoy everyone!**

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CHAPTER 12

Cuddy had woken up to a pleasant tickle on her neck. She opened her eyes, suppressing a giggle, and turned to remove whatever it was. She quickly turned back around. It was House's stubble that was tickling her neck since he had fallen asleep with his face buried in it.

Her eyes grew wide. House's stubble. House was in her bed. House. Cuddy peaked under the covers and quickly shoved them back down with a squeak. And they were naked.

Perfect.

She squeezed her eyes shut and tried to remember what had happened the night before. How did she go from being on a date with _Don_ to being in bed with _House_, of all people?

She silently went over the events of the night before.

She was on a date with Don. He came over. House came to the door to bother her. She asked him whether he liked her. She closed the door in his face. Don left. She downed three glasses of wine.

Three glasses of wine would not have gotten her so drunk that she couldn't remember anything. One thing she prided herself on was _not_ being a lightweight.

That must have been one hell of a wine.

She felt House move slightly to get into a more comfortable position, dragging her with him. As he settled down again, he ran his hand over her thigh and rested it right over her stomach. She shivered. Only he could make her respond in such a way without even meaning to…without even being _awake_.

And suddenly the night's events came back to her like lightning. The smoldering looks. The force. The sex.

The overwhelming desperation.

The need.

She blushed crimson and turned away from him. If the three glasses of wine had made everything so hazy that she did something as irrational as sleep with House, what would have happened if she'd downed the whole bottle like she'd wanted to?

She suppressed a shudder. Best not to think about that. She carefully untangled herself from House's limbs, immediately missing the warmth of his embrace.

She tiptoed out of the room and slipped into her bathroom, closing the door softly behind her.

She stood in front of the mirror, silently assessing herself. She didn't look happy or sad, angry or neutral. She didn't look as though she'd gotten a good night's sleep, but she didn't look as though she'd gotten no sleep at all.

She looked as though she'd been thoroughly and completely fucked.

The thought made her smile, as did the familiar and greatly missed ache between her legs.

Her smile soon faded, however. What was she going to do with the man in her bed?

Cuddy quickly showered and tied the towel around herself before creeping back into the bedroom to retrieve her clothes. She stood at the foot of the bed for a moment and just watched him. He was still asleep, thankfully, and he looked, in one word, innocent.

She snorted softly, but it was the truth. His frown lines, still visible from years of use, had softened and the ever present scowl on his face was replaced with what could only be called a slight smile.

She was just sad that she didn't have a camera on her.

Cuddy quickly got dressed, gathered up her things and left her house. As she drove to work, she couldn't help but feel sad.

It had been the best night of her life and House wouldn't even know it.

---- HOUSE M.D. ----

House opened the door and peeked his head into Cuddy's office. "You rang, Boss?"

"You haven't done your clinic hours today," she replied without looking up from her paper work.

House groaned. "Aww man. Why is it always about clinic? Don't you ever just call me down to talk? Or maybe to commend me for my excellent work?" He stepped fully into the office and closed the door.

Cuddy rolled her eyes but still didn't look up at him. She signed a form and placed it in a tray on the corner of her desk before grabbing another one. "I'll make sure you get a gold star next to your name next time you actually do your job."

House frowned. Why wouldn't she look at him? "Well, I'd love to stay and chat, my Cuddly-Wuddly, but I gotta run. Big case upstairs and my little duckies might get anxious, me being away for so long."

Without looking up, "House, you have no cases. Clinic. Now."

House glared at her but it went unnoticed. He picked up his pager and squinted at it. "Oh would you look at that? Seems like Wilson needs me for a consult. Gotta run!" He turned on his heel and was about to walk out when Cuddy's voice stopped him.

"House! Please just do the two measly hours of clinic duty that everyone is required to do. Why do we always have to have this fight? It's starting to get really old."

Only Cuddy could have said that without even lifting her head. It was as if she was bored with him. That hurt his pride a bit. He took a deep breath, puffing out his chest. But he wasn't going down without a fight.

House looked straight at her as he bit out a bit petulantly, "I thought you got special privileges for sleeping with the boss."

Cuddy's head shot up so fast, House was afraid she may have gotten whiplash and that would have been unfortunate because she had one beautiful neck. And he'd gotten to nibble on it. It was just as delicious as he thought it would be.

Before she could reply he looked away from her and started to bounce his cane on the carpet. "You were gone when I woke up." All traces of sarcasm were gone.

Cuddy melted at the soft tone of his voice. Her first instinct was to apologize but she quickly stopped. "I…I was going to be late for work."

"Why didn't you wake me?" he asked, finally looking up at her. "I could have used some of that coffee you so nicely made for yourself. Selfish." The playful tone was back but the uncomfortable air was still there.

Cuddy smiled slightly. "I heard from Wilson that you hadn't been sleeping too well–"

"Wilson has a big mouth."

"So I wanted you to get as much sleep as you could, especially after last night's…events." Cuddy looked away and House noticed the slight pink tinge that had spread across her cheeks.

House grinned. "You got that right. You completely wore me out! You were vicious!" He lifted up the back of his shirt to show her his back. She gasped audibly and bit back a grin.

His back was covered in various scratches and cuts, some of which had probably been bleeding.

"I told everyone you were a hellcat in the sack but I didn't know to what extent."

"What can I say? You just bring out my wild side." Cuddy got up from her desk and came around to stand in front of him. One look and House could tell that she was going to say something that he wasn't going to like.

"House, I–"

"Had a really good time last night but can't do it ever again because it would fuck up our work-place relationship, right?"

Cuddy smiled but House didn't return it. "You always know just what I'm going to say." House's face fell and she continued. "But you can never seem to figure out _why_."

Blue met blue as House finally looked up at her.

"I don't think that it can happen again because I don't think I can handle just being your fuck-buddy. I'm looking for a relationship. Someone who will be with me for a long time. Someone who I can trust and count on."

"You can trust me."

"I know that, and I'm so glad that I can. But I'm looking for a relationship, House, and I just don't think that you're ready for one. At least not with me. Not yet. I know you're still in love with Stacy."

House glared at her and stood up straight, anger evident in his eyes. "I'm _not_ in love with Stacy."

"You say that now, but what if she came to you later saying that she was going to leave her husband and come back to you. What would you do?"

House remained silent.

Cuddy smiled sadly. "When you've figured out what you want, let me know. But for now, stop sabotaging my dates. Let me try to find what I want too." She slowly walked over the windows behind her desk and stared out into the courtyard.

House frowned slightly in thought. "So let me get this straight. You want a relationship, but you don't think I can handle one. So you're going to date creeps until I _can_ handle one?"

Cuddy didn't answer.

"Well what if I told you that I was ready for a relationship right now?"

"I wouldn't believe you," came her quick but quiet reply.

House paused for a moment. "Let me take you out to dinner on Friday."

Cuddy turned around. "What?"

"Let me take you out to dinner. I'll prove to you that I can handle a relationship right now."

Cuddy smiled softly but shook her head. "I don't think it'll work right now. Give it time."

"Cuddy, just–"

"House, please just give it time."

House stared hard into her sapphire eyes and nodded abruptly before turning and walking out of her office.

---- HOUSE M.D. ----

He stumbled into his office and sat down heavily in his arm chair. He lifted his right leg up and placed it carefully on the foot rest before downing two Vicodin. As the pain eased, thoughts bombarded his mind.

The night he'd spent with Cuddy had been spectacular. But was it enough to have a relationship with her if it was just based on sex?

'It's not just the sex,' he told himself. They'd known each other for years. They'd dated in college for a short while and only broke it off because they wanted to pursue their own careers. It had been mutual. After years of being apart, his feelings for her had diminished and he's grown to love Stacy. But now, after years of working together, yelling at each other, making each other mad, the feelings had come back with full force.

When she had started dating again, the green monster inside him came out with a vengeance and destroyed whole towns in its wake. He'd been surprised but when he watched her from outside the café with Don, he'd just wanted to strangle the man and drag her back to her house and chain her there so she could never leave.

And now that they'd finally gotten together, he wanted her more than ever. He wanted to have her to himself.

That's why he asked her out to dinner. He wanted her. And he wanted her to want him.

But she thinks that he wants Stacy back. And she called him out on it too. And what did he do?

He couldn't even deny it.

He couldn't stand there and tell her that he wouldn't choose Stacy over her if it came to that. And why?

Because he didn't know the answer to the question himself.

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**Ok everyone. That was chapter 12! And that is the last update I will have for you all before I leave::tears:: I'm leaving on Wednesday night! I'll be back on August 25****th**** and I hope to see a lot of lovely updates in my inbox when I get back! XD**

**Thanks to everyone who has really embraced BatS! Mariel and I love you all so much!!! XD**

**I'll miss you all! But I'll be back soon and I'll make sure I read and review everything I can!**

**For everyone that I beta for, please send me anything that you have written before Wednesday so I can read it and get it back to you before I leave!**

**Love you all! Anyone want a postcard? P**

**::hugs::**

**Read and review as always! Thanks!**

**::passes around cookies **_**and**_** milk::**


	13. Chapter 13

**Hello everyone!!! I'M BAAAAACK!!!! Did ya miss me? My vacation was AWESOME!!! Did lots of shopping, eating and writing!! So this is an extra long update for you all! I hope you enjoy it!**

**Just a little note…I've noticed that Stacy is INCREDIBLY OOC…I'm sorry about that. Can't do much about it though, considering I started the fic with her OOC and a major personality change is NOT about to take place. XD So I'm sorry if she bothers you all in this chapter. She is VERY OOC in this one. But I think that all that matters is if House and Cuddy are IC, don't you agree? So please no flames about Stacy's OOC-ness ok? Gracias!**

**  
Also, the Ducklings are NOT going to be a part of this. They really don't matter in this fic so I'm not going to try and force scenes with them. All righty?**

**Just thought I'd put those things out there.**

**Thanks to Huddy the Ultimate, MJ, Kitty, Mariel, Dr. Professor Royallace Garden, TeresaB, Inu-midoriko, HOUSEM.D.FanForever, PaulaAbdulChica2007, Gaby, Little Lunar Wolf, 11nine73, sinister scribe, cwerner, ibreak4CSI, Cappy, Housefangirl35, BlakValentyne-U69, dcloverz, Buba, and thyla!**

**Buba: **Aww man, sorry I missed you! But I'm back! XD Hope you enjoy this update! I had fun writing it! So glad you liked the other two chapters though. They were definitely my FAVORITE ones to write! XD

**Thyla:** There you are, hun! Where've you been? XD Yes I'm back! Of course I can forgive you, if you promise to NEVER DO IT AGAIN! LMAO jk Thanks for the great review! Hope you enjoy this one too!

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CHAPTER 13

Cuddy put her head in her hands and leaned on the window sill for support.

What did she do? House had finally asked her out and showed some feelings for her and instead of tackling him to the ground and having her wicked way with him before climbing on his white horse and riding out toward the sunset…she'd told him that he was still in love with his ex and that he didn't know what he wanted.

Cuddy sighed in frustration. She was so angry with herself for basically saying to fuck off for now but in the end she knew she'd made the right decision.

He had to figure out just what, or who, he wanted. If, in the end, he chose Stacy, he'd have to deal with the consequences of his decision and she'd have to deal with his decision and get over him.

But if he chose her...

Her heart fluttered at the thought but she ignored it.

If he chose her, then maybe there was some hope for him after all. If would be proof that he could handle change and move on.

She made her way over to her desk and began to do her paperwork. She figured that if she engrossed herself in her work, she'd forget everything that happened.

After working for three hours straight, she dropped the file in her OUT box for her secretary to pick up and groaned when she realized that she'd barely made a dent in the growing mound of paperwork.

She dropped her pen with a sigh. Sometimes she wished that she wasn't the Dean of PPTH. She'd have so much less work to do and she'd be able to do more of the things that she loved, painting being the prominent one.

Her stomach growled and she realized that she hadn't eaten anything since breakfast and that had been at 7:30 in the morning. Just as she began contemplating stopping for a quick bite to eat in the cafeteria, Stacy burst into her office carrying a large brown bag.

"Hey Lisa! I looked at the time and saw that it was _way_ past lunchtime and being your best friend, I know that you haven't eaten since breakfast since I haven't seen you leave your office in hours." She plopped down in the seat across from Cuddy's desk and placed the bag in front of her. "So I popped downtown and picked up some Chinese for us." She cleared off her desk and began pulling out various cartons. The smell of rice, chicken and broccoli and egg rolls filled Cuddy's nostrils, making her mouth water.

"Stacy, you really didn't have to do this. I could have just gone down to the cafeteria and eaten something quickly over there."

Stacy scrunched up her nose. "No way. Hospital food does not beat Chinese food from Golden Wok. You _know_ that."

Cuddy grinned and took a bite of an egg roll. She groaned happily and opened up her seltzer. "You're so right."

Stacy smiled. "And besides, I wanted to eat lunch with you. We haven't done anything together in so long." Cuddy nodded in agreement. "Also," continued Stacy, "if you're sitting here eating with me, I know that you're not about to run away from me to avoid the Q & A we're about to have."

Cuddy's eyes widened. "You set me up?"

"I learned from the best."

Cuddy grinned. "I have to admit, that _was_ pretty clever."

"Thank you," Stacy replied with grin.

Cuddy shook her head and took another bite. "Okay, now that you've got me trapped here, what do you want to know?"

Stacy grinned and Cuddy suddenly felt a deep sense of foreboding. She knew somewhere deep inside that what Stacy was going to ask her would not be good. She took a deep breath in an effort to keep her face blank.

"How was your second date with the Sex God? Or should I say Dr. Edward Jones of Princeton General?"

Cuddy stifled a groan. She'd forgotten that she'd lied to Stacy before. There was no way to get around the question either. Unless she lied through her teeth _again_.

But she didn't want to lie. Especially not to Stacy, one of her best friends.

Cuddy stared at Stacy moment, trying to figure out how to confess but before she could say anything, Stacy's eyes widened.

"Oh no. I know that look."

Cuddy frowned. "What look?"

"You're going to tell me something bad now. I know you are. So you better just say it fast and get in over with so we can bury it in the ground and plant a tree on it."

"Well," said Cuddy, grimacing slightly, "it depends on how you take it."

"Lisa, stop stalling."

"All right!" she exclaimed. She took a deep breath and told Stacy everything. She told her about the Sex God, about the date and Amours, about Don, and about House.

Everything except the minor detail about House and her having slept together the night before. Stacy didn't need to know.

Stacy sat in silence as Cuddy relayed everything. When she'd finished, Stacy just stared at her for a moment before looking away. "I don't understand why you couldn't tell me this before."

"It was…a humiliating experience," replied Cuddy after taking a moment to search for the right words, but Stacy had already left.

Cuddy stared at the empty chair.

Shit.

Sure she'd lied but at least she had admitted it. She sighed harshly and began eating the food that Stacy had so conveniently left lying in the middle of her desk. She'd go to find Stacy later, probably with some sort of peace offering like a bottle of wine or something.

She took a large bite of her food just as House barreled into her office for the second time that day. "Dr. Cuddy! Long time no see? How've you been? How're the twins? I see you're now sporting the chipmunk look since the last time we've met. That was _so_ last season," he exclaimed, gesturing wildly toward her stuffed mouth.

She glared at him before quickly chewing and swallowing the food. "What do you want, House?"

"Ooh! Is this for me? How thoughtful of you!" He plopped down in Stacy's seat, eyeing the food greedily and licking his lips. "Yummy! I love egg rolls!"

"WAIT! Those are–"

He chomped into the egg roll and groaned happily.

"–Stacy's." She sighed and watched him demolish the egg roll in two bites before serving himself rice and chicken. "Wow. Twice in one day. This must be a new record," said Cuddy dryly.

"I needed your approval on this procedure," he replied, his mouth stuffed with food. Cuddy grimaced at the primitive display and scrunched up her nose in disgust. She pushed her plate away from her, trying to control her upchuck reflex.

"And you're eating my food because?"

"Oh, this is your food? I thought it was Stacy's."

"Same difference." She grabbed the file from his outstretched hand with an aggravated sigh and examined it. "House, all your patient needs is a couple of bowls of chicken soup and some bed rest. This is a file from the clinic."

"Since when did you become Ms. State-the-Obvious?

"Why are you showing me this file? What do I need to sign off on?"

"Nothing," he replied with a shrug. "I just needed an excuse to sexually harass you and eat your food.

"What happened to Wilson? I thought _he_ usually pays for your stolen lunches, even though you make enough money to end world hunger."

"He's busy. Something about redeeming himself in the world of online dating or something. I don't know. He just babbles sometimes. I have a filter that tunes that stuff out." House grinned and Cuddy shook her head. "So…what was Stacy doing eating lunch with you? I though you were too busy with your Dean of Medicine-y duties to associate with us lowly peasants."

"Why are you so interested in what Stacy and I do?"

"Why are you so interested in why I'm interested?"

"Uh…hmmm…let me think," replied Cuddy, pretending to think for a moment, "because you claim that you don't love her, yet you _never_ fail to question me about her."

He shrugged. "Well, considering I always ask about why _you_ were with her and what _you_ were talking about with her, some might see it differently."

Cuddy pursed her lips. She was not going to give in. Not this time. "For some reason, House, I really highly doubt that."

House looked away. After a moment he looked back. "Cuddy…"

"Yes?"

He paused for a moment, looking slightly uncomfortable but looked straight into her eyes and said, "Are you going to eat that?"

Cuddy released a breath that she hadn't realized she was holding. "What?"

He grinned, knowing that he'd thrown her off guard, and pointed to the half-eaten egg roll on her plate. "I asked, O Deaf One, whether you were gonna eat that."

Cuddy stared at the egg roll for a minute before shaking her head. "I lost my appetite when you began stuffing your face with the _other_ food on the table."

"Sweet." He grabbed it and shoved half of it into his mouth. "Because you were putting on the pounds anyway, my little _moti_."

Cuddy frowned at him. "What does that mean?"

House grinned evilly. "Uh…my little…fatty."

Cuddy glared at him and grabbed the rest of the egg roll out of his hand and ate it. House chuckled. "Geez, Cuddles, you're so easy to get riled up. I can get you going in _Hindi_. Now that's an accomplishment."

"It's an accomplishment if you get me mad?"

He stood up and came closer. "Yeah and I love it!"

Cuddy rolled her eyes but he continued to approach her. "Your cheeks flush, your eyes flash, and your heart begins to race. Sometimes you look like you want to beat me with my own cane…" He paused and grinned. "But most of the time you just look like you want to jump me."

Her eyes grew wide and her heart began to beat faster, just like he said. But it wasn't anger that was fueling it this time. It was pure lust. She jumped up from her chair and began to back away from him.

He kept advancing slowly but surely and continued to speak, his tone low and seductive. "Do you know what happens to _me_? My body temperature rises, my eyes flash, my heart begins to race. But I _never_ want to hurt you. I _always_ want to throw you down and ravish your body senseless."

He backed her up against her filing cabinet and grinned as he watched her eyes dart around, looking for a way to escape him. He was now so close to her, he could smell her perfume. He filled his lungs with the sweet scent and exhaled softly. "Let me show you," he whispered, his back to the door, effectively blocking her from view of any probing eyes.

Cuddy opened her mouth to answer but nothing would come out. This was going _way _too far. She had to stop him. Just this morning she'd told him they need to wait and what was he doing? Completely coming on to her. Shit.

"H-House." Her voice was soft but was a clear enough warning to back the hell off.

Since when did he ever do as he was told?

His fingers skimmed the side of her leg and gently rested on her lower back. His face was inches from hers, their lips about to touch…when the door burst open.

"All right, I've decided to forgive–" Stacy looked at them, stunned. "What's going on?" she demanded.

House turned and glared at her. "There was a bug in her hair," he said as he stomped past her.

Cuddy smiled awkwardly, cheeks still flushed.

"Uh…ok." Stacy plopped back into her chair and stared at the empty food cartons. "I take it he ate all the food."

Cuddy nodded before sitting in her own chair once more. "He said something about Wilson being too busy to feed him or something. So…"

"Right…well as I said before, I've decided to forgive you."

Cuddy frowned. "Forgive me for what?"

"For lying to me and for deceiving me. I've also decided how you can make it up to me."

Cuddy raised one eyebrow. "Um…all right. What do I have to do?"

Stacy handed her a piece of folded paper. Confused, Cuddy opened it up.

It was a paper just like the one she'd found taped to her chest a week before: a profile from HotDoctors (dot) com.

Cuddy's eyes widened and she dropped the paper on her desk. "Oh no. NO WAY. Are you SERIOUS? I'm not going to go on ANOTHER blind date. Especially one that _you_ pick. Look what happened last time."

Stacy smiled. "I know. But this guy sounds different. And he meets all of your requirements too. Tall, mid-forties, looking for a woman in her late 30's and early to mid-forties. Blue eyes, dark hair, though he admits it's thinning a little at the top. So he has a sense of humor…uh…likes going to the park or just sitting at home with a beer to watch the game. Plays the piano, guitar _and _harmonica. Come _on_, Lisa! This guy sounds AMAZING! And he's a doctor! You can't get anything better than this."

Cuddy smiled slightly. He really did sound amazing. But that's what had happened last time too. "What else does it say?"

"Well, it says something about him having some condition in his leg so now he has some trouble walking but who cares? Are you _that_ superficial?"

"No! Of course not! I can't believe you'd even think that!" Cuddy exclaimed. She had a lot of experience with hot doctors with leg problems…well maybe just one. She sighed. "Sure he sounds great, but Stacy, I really don't think that I can do this. Not again. Not so soon after…everything that has happened."

Stacy shook her head. "No, you have to do this. If you stop looking just because you've had some bad dates, you'll never find someone."

_I've already found someone_.

"I can't."

Stacy sighed and got up. "Well, I guess that's the end then." She got up from her chair, shook Cuddy's hand and walked to the door. "It was very nice being friends with you. I've valued every moment we've spent together." She was about to leave the office when Cuddy finally found her voice.

"WAIT! You're going to end our friendship because I won't go on a blind date?"

"Yep."

Cuddy frowned. "Are you serious?"

"Unfortunately."

"Stacy, this is ridiculous."

"Do you value our friendship?"

Cuddy was taken aback. "What? Of course I do! Why do you think I'm arguing–"

"Then what's one date gonna do?"

Cuddy stared at her incredulously. "You're going to end our friendship if I don't go on this date?"

"Yep."

"And if I go on this date, we're good?"

"Completely."

Cuddy paused and thought. Was she nuts? Stacy was going to end their friendship just because she lied…one small lie to spare her feelings…But Stacy was right…it was just a date…and the guy sounded amazing…

Cuddy took a deep breath. "I'm sorry, Stacy. I just can't."

Stacy smiled sadly. "Goodbye, Lisa. It's been fun."

She walked out of the office, leaving Cuddy to sit behind her desk, shocked, hurt, and alone.

--- HOUSE M.D. ---

House watched the exchange from behind a potted fern which was in the perfect spot for eavesdropping and not being seen doing it.

As he watched Stacy leave, he noticed that she looked very self-satisfied, not at all how she should have looked after such an intense discussion. House was filled with dread.

She must have convinced Cuddy to go on _another _blind date.

He stole one more look at Cuddy before moving to sit in one of the clinic waiting room chairs. She looked utterly miserable, the exact opposite of how she should have been looking. Why would she be miserable? Didn't she _want_ to go soul-searching to find some great guy who would sweep her off her feet with great hair and teeth and an incredibly hot accent?

Eew…he'd just described Chase.

He shuddered. She'd want someone who could run with her, someone who could carry her to the bedroom, someone who would help her crank out tons of little, gorgeous, well-endowed Cuddy-babies.

Definitely _not_ Chase.

And not _him_ either…right?

He sighed harshly and looked up just as Cuddy's office door opened. She walked right past him, clearly oblivious to everything around her, or she would have seen him and yelled at him about skipping clinic duty. He got up as quickly as his leg allowed and hobbled after her, keeping his distance so she would not know he was there.

She took her time wandering down the hallways, peeking into patient rooms every so often. If he didn't know better, he'd say that she was sleepwalking or just checking up on her hospital.

But there was definitely a purpose to her stride. She probably would be storming down the hallway to her destination instead of lollygagging the way she was if something hadn't obviously been bothering her.

Gradually she began to slow down and, sensing they had reached their destination, House quickly ducked around the corner, peeking his head around to watch.

Cuddy walked over to one of the brown doors lining the hallway. She placed her hand on the door handle and seemed to brace herself. She took a deep breath and went inside, closing the door behind her.

He hobbled swiftly to the door but stopped abruptly.

It was the door to Stacy's office.

What would she need to talk to Stacy about now? They'd just talked for the past fifteen minutes!

--- HOUSE M.D. ---

Cuddy leaned her back against the door. Stacy looked up from her computer.

"To what do I owe this visit, Dr. Cuddy?" The harsh professional tone cut through her like a knife. It brought back memories of House and how he'd spoken to her like that after his surgery, effectively ending their friendship.

Cuddy repressed a shudder and took a deep breath. "I can't believe…why are you…" Everything she had rehearsed in her mind seemed to be stuck in her throat. Nothing comprehensible would come out. "ARGH! This is ridiculous!" She turned on her heel and walked out of the office…straight into House.

She managed to suppress her shriek of surprise and slam the door behind her. "WHAT ARE YOU DOING?!" she whispered frantically.

"I thought that would be obvious. And why are we whispering?" he asked, purposely raising his voice.

"SHHHH!!! Why are you following me?!"

"I thought that would be obvious too. Your ass hypnotized me. How can I be blamed for where it led me?"

Cuddy gave him an incredulous look, grabbed his arm, and dragged him to the nearest janitor's closet. She all but shoved him inside and closed the door behind them, locked it, and turned on the light.

"_Please _leave me alone."

"Why? Bothering you is so much fun! And how can I leave you alone if _you_ keep dragging me around?"

Cuddy's eyes flashed angrily. "Why were you outside Stacy's office?" she asked accusingly.

"Why were you bolting from Stacy's office?"

Cuddy stuck out her chin indignantly. "I wasn't bolting."

"Ha…yeah right. You looked like an antelope on speed." Cuddy rolled her eyes. "I could practically _see_ you heart pounding underneath those lovely funbags." He leered openly at her chest and Cuddy pushed his head away. He grabbed her hand and slowly looked at her from top to bottom. As his eyes made their way back to her face, he noticed that it was slightly pinker than it was when they began their descent.

"Stop looking at me like that."

"Like what?"

"Like you've seen me naked."

House grinned devilishly. "Have you forgotten, my dear Cuddlykins, that I've already seen you naked…multiple times?"

"Don't remind me."

"Remind you of what?" He took a stop toward her. "Of the sparks that flare every time we're near each other? The feel of my hand," he raised his hand and stroked her hair, "as I run it through the silk of your hair? The feel of my lips," he brought his head down and gently nipped up her neck and along her jaw until it reached her ear, "as I kiss you senseless?"

Cuddy groaned. "Please…why are you doing this?" she asked, involuntarily closing her eyes.

"Because you need to remember," he whispered, before claiming her lips with his own.

The kiss was full of want. It was hot and passionate and left her breathless. It was filled with all the longing and desire that they both felt, only she couldn't give in again.

Cuddy broke away and took a step back. "I'm sorry, House. I can't do this. Not now."

She gracefully scrambled out of the closet, closing the door with a snap and plunging House into darkness. He sighed harshly, anger and need bubbling just below the surface. He took deep breaths to keep all of his emotions in check. He was not going to lose control, not when I was right there, just beyond his grasp.

He closed his eyes and drove his fist into the door.

--- HOUSE M.D. ---

Cuddy walked briskly around the corner and leaned against the wall, savoring the feeling of the cool concrete against her hot skin. Tears pricked her eyes but she refused to let them fall.

It was getting too hard to deny him, especially when they were in such close quarters. She had to distance herself. There was no other way. She rubbed angrily at the few tears that had managed to escape and were rolling down her cheeks.

She stood there for what seemed like hours, but was only a few minutes, to steady her heart and trembling hands.

She sighed and walked briskly back to Stacy's office. She knocked lightly and walked in, closing the door behind her. She leaned back against her door again, leaning her head back against it and closing her eyes. Stacy put down her paperwork and leaned back in her chair, arms folded over her chest.

Cuddy sighed harshly. Without opening her eyes, "What time on Friday?"

Stacy jumped up and squealed. "Yes, Lisa! I knew you'd come around." She came around the desk and gave Cuddy a hug, one Cuddy did not reciprocate, but Stacy didn't seem to notice. "Come, sit down." She herded Cuddy into one of hr visitors' chairs and plopped down in hers. "So your date is at eight on Friday at Amours."

Cuddy's eyes practically bugged out of her head. "Nuh-uh, no way! Are you kidding me? You're setting me up on _another_ blind date at the exact same time and place? Are you completely insane?!"

"What? That's the best time and place for this guy! What was I supposed to do?"

Cuddy groaned and put her head in her hands. "Why are you doing this to me?" she found herself asking for the second time that day.

Stacy just smiled. "Lisa, I'm not asking you to marry this guy or even have sex with him. I'm just asking you to go on one _measly_ date. What's so scary about that?"

Cuddy mumbled something inaudible about conniving lawyers before sighing again. "What should I wear?"

Stacy grinned. "That's the spirit! Now go out there and show 'im who's boss!"

Cuddy stood up and went to the door. Just before leaving, she peeked her head back inside. "Wait…what's his name? If his name is ANYTHING like last time I'll–"

"Relax, Lisa. He has a perfectly decent name."

"Yeah right, I know your definition for decent and it's definitely not the same as the dictionary."

"His name is 'LonelyGenius'. How bad can he be?"

--- HOUSE M.D. ---

House stood by the sink in the men's bathroom, running his fingers under cold water to ease the pain.

Why did she keep running away? Why was she denying the blatant attraction between them?

She was scared of something, that was obvious, but what she was afraid of was beyond him. He was never one to turn away from a dare, however, and by denying him, she was daring him to pursue her.

The door opened behind him and in the mirror, he saw Wilson walk in.

"There you are. God, I've been looking for you all day. Where do you keep disappearing to?"

"Cuddy's office. She just can't get enough of me."

Wilson rolled his eyes. "Right, anyway I've decided that I have to redeem myself. So I've found another–"

"No."

"You don't even know what I was going to say!"

"Yes I do." He dried his hands on his jeans, grabbed his cane and shuffled out of the bathroom, Wilson close on his tail. "Considering the fact that the only thing you _did_ wrong lately was set me up with a Girl Scout and screw the new nurse in Radiology."

"I didn't–"

"That's not what she's told all the nursing staff." At Wilson's prompt blush, House continued. "Since you screwing that walking STD has nothing to do with me, you obviously want to set me up with another dumb broad. Am I right?"

"Yes, but–"

"So no, you are not setting me up with–"

"Brown wavy, curly hair, blue eyes, 5'4'', 39 years old. Activities: likes jogging, watching movies, traveling–"

"What makes you think that–"

"Music: likes Rolling Stones, Bryan Adams, Pink Floyd, Plain White T's, The Fray, Shania Twain–"

"NO ONE likes Shania Twain."

"Enjoys drinking red wine–"

"Wilson, just shut–"

"–Jack Daniels."

House stopped walking abruptly and turned to Wilson. "Rack?" he innocently inquired.

"Uh…_nice_…32 C."

House made a noncommittal grunt and continued walking down the hallway toward his office, no longer protesting. Wilson hurried after him. "Books: likes The Kite Runner, Namesake, Warrior's Woman." They reached the door to House's office. "Uh…enjoys horseback riding…monster truck rallies–"

"Wilson!" House yelled, effectively ending Wilson's rant. "Stop making things up about her. You had me at 'C'." He limped into his office, plopped down behind his desk and began skimming one of the journals Cameron had so conveniently left on his desk after sorting his mail.

Wilson just stood there gaping. "S-So you're going to do it?"

"Uh…yeah…when is it?"

"Friday. Eight o'clock. Are you sure you want to?"

House looked up at him. "What, do you not want me to go?"

"NO, no I _do_ want you to go. I'm just scared now because you agreed really easily. You're not planning to hire some random bum on the street to go on this date for you, are you?"

"No. It'd cost you too much money."

"So…what's changed?"

"Nothing."

"Did something happen with Stacy?"

House stood angrily. "This has NOTHING to do with Stacy."

Wilson took a step back. "Okay…geez…" He looked at his watch. "Shit…I've got a meeting in five minutes." He sped to the door. "Oh by the way, it's at Amour's so wear a tie."

House's eyes widened. "Are you fuc–WILSON!"

But he'd made a quick getaway.

"Damn it." Wilson knew his history with the God forsaken place and still made the arrangements. He sat down behind his desk again in a huff and was about to read his journal again when he saw the piece of paper lying innocently in the middle of the page.

He picked it up and opened it curiously. It was the profile of the woman Wilson had set him up with from HotDoctors (dot) com.

House quickly scanned it and found that Wilson hadn't lied. She really did like everything he'd said she did.

Hmm…endocrinologist…they'd be able to have some pretty interesting conversations then.

His eyes quickly zoomed in on her name.

_BustyBrownHairedBeauty_

This was going to be fun.

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**So…what'd ya think? Do you guys know who their dates are? I bet you, you don't!!!! MUAHAHAHAHA! ((cough))**

**Anyway, this is a birthday gift from me to all of you in honor of my birthday today! LMAO! Hope you liked your present! I better get a lot of nice presents (reviews) in return!**

**Love you all!**

**HA**


	14. Chapter 14

**HONEY!!! I'M HOME!!!!!!!! XD So everyone did ya miss me? XD I know I know, I've been gone for a while. This school year has been soooooooooo hectic I haven't even had any spare time for myself. I just finished my exams so I figured since I had a few days free I'd better get this chapter out so no one will massacre me. And so that I don't get any more reviews asking me whether I'm going to be continuing this. XD The answer is yes, guys. And here's proof. XD**

**Thanks to Eleanor J, Charlie Winchester, HuddyTheUltimate15, Sinister Scribe, Kirsty, House-OfficeFangirl35, glicine, cwerner, chris-am, Random, thyla, dingi, Buba, HOUSEM.D.FanForever, MJ, darkjewelledassassin, WrongfulActs, scheggia, Gaby, dcloverz, Kek, wrytingtyme, starkidtw, Smirk. Swagger. Slytherin., ibreak4CSI, A.Heiden, AnOnYmOuSiTy, tvkid84, HuddehFTW, and babyryzze for all your amazing reviews!!!!**

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**Anon review replies**

**Kirsty: LMAO I know I didn't update very soon but I hope you enjoy this chapter!**

**Random:) Well you'll just have to read to find out won't you? XD**

**Thyla: LMAO Yeppers I'm back and thanks for the cupcake. It was delicious. XD Sorry this took so long. Please don't eat me! XD**

**Dingi: Thank you SO much for the birthday wishes and the wonderful review! It really makes me smile when I read it. **

**Buba: Thanks as always for your amazing reviews!**

**Kek: Lol well you're just gonna have to read this chapter and see what happens. XD**

**AnOnYmOuSiTy: Thank you for your review. I replied to your review in the latest chapter of Beauty and the Snark so please check there if you haven't already. Thank you.**

**Babyryzze: I hope you enjoy this chapter! XD**

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CHAPTER 14

Cuddy pulled into the parking lot thirty minutes early. She stared at the bright, cheerful lights of Amours but could not bring herself to leave the comfort of her car. Pulling the key out of the ignition, the sudden silence enveloped and forced her to confront the thoughts that had been bouncing around in her head for the past thirty minutes.

This was wrong on so many levels. She was going on a blind date…again, at Amours…again.

Why was she even doing this?

_Because you value Stacy's friendship_.

She valued the friendship of a woman who'd tricked her into going on a date she didn't want to be on? She valued the friendship of a woman who'd walked out on House when he needed her the most? She valued the friendship of a woman _stolen_ her man from–

Wait…did she almost refer to House as _her man?_

Maybe Stacy was right. Maybe she needed to go on this date, not so much because she had to get over her fear of blind dates.

She had to get over House.

---- HOUSE M.D. ----

House quickly limped from his bedroom, tie in one hand, cane in the other.

He was late…again.

"Shit." He scrambled around the room, grabbed his Vicodin off the piano, grabbed his keys and slammed the door. No time to call a cab. He'd have to take his bike.

---- HOUSE M.D. ----

Cuddy slipped from the comforting warmth of her car into the biting cold of the parking lot. Shivering slightly, she approached the restaurant, the warm light emanating from the windows luring her forward.

_Well this is it._

She took a deep breath and walked in. The pleasant familiarity surrounded her and eased her nerves. She checked her coat and approached the hostess, the same woman who had been there last time.

She smiled. "Welcome to Amours, ma'am. It's very nice to see you again."

Cuddy smiled back. "Nice to see you too. I wanted to talk to you about what you did last time I was here."

The hostess paled and her eyes widened. "I-I…"

Cuddy held up her hand and the stuttering woman fell silent.

"The…_gentleman_ who escorted me out of the restaurant told me what you did." Actually that was an understatement. He'd pointed out how stupid she was considering, apparently,that_ everyone_ knew that that guy was married.

"Ma'am, I'm sorry for any pain I may have caused you, but I had to–"

"Thank you." The hostess stopped babbling and stared at her. "Thank you for doing what you did. If you hadn't, I probably would have had my heart broken and that is _much_ worse than humiliation because humiliation is easy to get over…for me at least. I've had a _lot_ of practice."

The hostess blushed slightly and Cuddy gave her a warm smile. It felt like a huge weight had been lifted off her shoulders. She could do this now. She could go on this date now, in the same place she had been humiliated…because she was over it. Everything was going to be ok. She just knew it.

"So, I have a reservation under L. Genius."

The hostess giggled. "Right this way, Ma'am."

---- HOUSE M.D. ----

House sped down the street, pushing the speed limit of sixty miles per hour to eighty.

The cold wind nipped at his face and rushed wildly around his body as he made a sharp turn into the restaurant parking lot.

He staggered off the bike, snatched his cane from its holder and began to hobble toward the restaurant.

His hand was on the handle when he remembered…

"Fuck."

---- HOUSE M.D. ----

The hostess led Cuddy across the restaurant and seated her at a small, candle-lit table by the window overlooking the moonlit courtyard. She ordered a glass of red wine and stared into the night, patiently waiting for the lonely genius to arrive.

---- HOUSE M.D. ----

He staggered out of the store and back to his bike, mumbling under his breath, "Damn flowers."

He sped away from the God-forsaken flower shop with a small, dainty corsage tucked into his breast pocket.

---- HOUSE M.D. ----

Thirty minutes passed and he still wasn't there. Cuddy stared into the depths of her wineglass.

She'd been stood up.

She couldn't help the rush of disappoint that flooded her veins. She knew he seemed too good to be true.

Dammit, why were all the good ones liars, gay, taken, or assholes?

So lost in her thoughts, she missed the roar of a motorcycle outside of the restaurant.

---- HOUSE M.D. ----

House hobbled quickly into the restaurant, helmet in one hand, corsage in the other. He yanked open the door with such force that he startled the hostess and one of the passing waitresses who nearly dropped her tray of food.

He practically plowed through two people to get to the hostess, who looked pleasantly stunned to see him. She opened her mouth to greet him but he interrupted her. "Yeah, yeah. Welcome to Amours, blah blah blah. I've heard this all before remember?" The hostess was stunned by his speech. "What table? Reservation's under L. Genius."

Dumbstruck, the hostess could only point toward the back of the restaurant which had tables by the windows overlooking the courtyard.

He shoved the helmet into her hands and made his way over to the lone woman by the window, her familiar brown hair cascading down her back.

---- HOUSE M.D. ----

"BustyBrownHairedBeauty, huh?"

The familiar, deep, rugged voice startled her out of her reverie. She looked up with surprise and suppressed a groan. House was standing over her grinning like an idiot. She scowled at him and then her eyes widened as she took in what he was wearing: dinner attire.

"What are you doing here? And how do you know that name?"

"Well I think the answer to both questions is a bit obvious." He shrugged. "What are _you_ doing here? Sitting all on your lonesome?"

"Waiting for my date to arrive," she snapped, "Again, what are _you_ doing here? You're not here to ruin another one of my dates are you? Because if you are, seriously, House, it's getting really old, really fast."

"Surprisingly everything I do _doesn't_ have to do with you, Cuddy. I'm on a date as well."

Cuddy felt a little bubble of jealousy burst in the pit of her stomach. "So what little girl are you meeting this time?" she asked snidely. It slipped out before she could stop herself.

House grinned widely and sat down. "You're jealous."

"Oh no! You can't sit down! And I'm not jealous!"

"Yes you are," he said, wagging a finger in her direction. "That's the only plausible reason. Can you think of anything else?"

"Curiosity?"

House smirked. "Right." He sat back and examined her intently. He had to admit…she looked damn sexy. The silky crimson dress hugged every curve perfectly, the neckline low enough to give him a good view of her perfect breasts but not slutty in the least. She had a way of pulling off the most revealing clothing with a certain grace.

Cuddy shifted under his intense stare and broke the silence. "Could you please leave? My date should be here soon."

"Come on," he said incredulously. "You can't be _that_ dense."

"What?"

"Do I seriously have to spell it out for you? I mean I knew you had more cleavage and junk in the trunk than brains but–"

Cuddy glared. "Spill it, House. NOW."

"Ooh, so forceful…so demanding…"

"HOUSE!"

"All right. Well let's start with the facts, shall we?" He was ready to stand up and start pacing but his leg prevented him from doing anything but stare at her intently, taking every change in her facial expression. "We're in the same restaurant on a blind date at the same time. Both of our dates haven't arrived yet. Oh and the biggest dead giveaway…" He paused for dramatic emphasis.

"Get ON with it, House!" she snapped, but she had a feeling she already knew what he was going to say.

"…I addressed you by your username."

Cuddy's groaned. He said it. "No…"

"I bet we've got the same reservations too. Come on! Let's count to three and then say it at the same time! I'll count! One…two…three!"

"L. Genius," they stated in unison, Cuddy, horrified, House, triumphant. He sat back in his seat and smirked at her. Cuddy resisted wiping the smirk off his face and settled for placing her head in her hands.

"I always get what I want."

Her head shot up. This blunt statement was said with so much self-satisfaction that she couldn't help but stare at him. "What?"

"I always get what I want in the end. You refused to go on a date with me, and now here we are."

"I can't believe this," she said after a moment.

He took a sip of his water. "What I can't believe is that your username is BustyBrownHairedBeauty. I mean, sure you have brown hair…but _busty_?"

"You seem to have no problem with my breasts."

"Yeah well, I'm easy to please." Cuddy glared at him and he smiled. "But seriously, who uses that kind of username? Besides people who are just looking for sex? I mean what kind of man did you think you'd get? Only an incredibly easy man would even _consider_ going on a date with someone named–"

She looked at him pointedly.

"Right."

Cuddy resisted smiling and downed the rest of her wine before neatly folding her napkin, placing it on her plate and standing up.

House frowned. "W-Wait, where are you going?"

"Remember, I had no intention of going on a date with you. Not now. You're not ready. You think you are, but you're not." She looked away from him for a moment. "You're still in love with Stacy." Sadness flitted across her face so fast a less observant man would have missed it. He didn't. She sighed before looking at him again. "So I'm leaving. I'll see you tomorrow, House."

House stood up abruptly, pain lancing through his leg. He hissed with pain and sat down again. She turned, the hiss of pain enough to stop her.

"What a waste of a night," he said through gritted teeth, reaching into his suit pocket in search of his Vicodin. "Are you seriously just going to walk out of here? After getting all dressed up and talking yourself into coming here." As Cuddy opened her mouth, he cut her off. "Don't deny it. I _know_ you had this big inner conflict-argument thing going, probably in your car in the parking lot right?"

Cuddy snapped her mouth shut. Damn, did he know her well. God, why'd he always have to be right?

"Come on, Cuddles. One dinner between friends. It doesn't have to be a date."

"We're not friends, remember? That ended eight years ago when you were lying in my hospital bed, clutching your thigh screaming that I betrayed you and saying…wait what was it?" She tapped her cheek for a second in mock thought. "Oh yes, I remember: that I was a crap doctor who shouldn't even be allowed to work with patients because I can't even diagnose my own fucking friend, let alone–"

"–a complete stranger."

House finished the sentence and Cuddy's eyes widened. "I remember. You don't have to remind me." House looked away, but not before Cuddy saw the guilt in his eyes.

Cuddy nodded, cheeks flushed with anger and a bit of guilt too for bringing up the past. She'd told herself that she'd bury it away and forget about it but it was so hard to forget. He hurt her that day and it wasn't the kind of hurt you forget about easily.

She turned on her heel and managed to get a few steps away before she heard his harsh mumble. "I didn't mean to push you away."

She spun around. "What?"

"I…I said those things…because I was in pain. I was angry and hurt and I wanted to take it out on someone and Stacy had had enough. The morphine wasn't enough. I…could still feel it. The waves of pain. It wasn't until after I said it and you never came back to check on me that I realized how much I'd fucked everything up between us." Cuddy remained silent. She didn't know what to say. "I never stopped considering us friends. So please, Cuddy…Lisa…one dinner. Between _friends_. It doesn't have to be a date."

Cuddy worried her lip between her teeth, tears welling up in her eyes. She took a deep breath and sat down, giving House a watery smile. "Thank you."

House nodded.

"So this is just a dinner…between friends…not a date."

"Right."

She leaned toward him slightly and said in hushed tones, "No sex."

House's face fell, though he was glad to be back on familiar ground, the awkward tension gone. "But-but…CUUUUDDDYYY!!!" he whined.

"No. I don't have sex with friends," she said sweetly. "Besides, I've never been a big fan of FWB's," she said distastefully.

House frowned. "FWB's?"

"Friends with benefits."

House sighed but smiled to himself as the waiter came around again. "Anything to drink, sir?"

"Water is fine, thank you," replied Cuddy. No more alcohol for her. She was going to be completely in charge of all her faculties tonight. She was going to need them to get through this night.

House smirked inwardly. "Scotch on the rocks, please. And another glass of wine for the lady along with that water."

Cuddy's eyes flew to his. "Wha–"

"Also, please bring us one small salad, Italian dressing on the side. Croutons?" he asked, but she was too dumbstruck to answer. He turned back to the waiter. "Croutons on the side. I'll have the clam chowder."

The waiter scribbled down the order. "All right, sir. Are you ready to order your main course now or would you rather wait?"

He looked at her and bit back a grin. Her eyes looked about ready to fall out of her head. He turned back to the waiter. "We'll wait."

As the man scurried away, Cuddy was finally able to pick up her jaw off the ground. "What are you DOING?!"

"I'm being courteous. Isn't that what men do on dates?" he asked with a curious grin.

"This isn't a date. And how could you order for me without even knowing what I wanted? What if I had wanted the lobster bisque instead?"

House rolled his eyes. "Too many calories for a nutrition freak like you."

Cuddy crossed her arms over her chest and raised an eyebrow.

He sighed. "Do you _really_ not want the salad, because I can call him back over here if you want me to."

She stared at him for a moment before looking at the menu again. "I'll eat it," she said as grudgingly as possible. After a moment she looked up to see him grinning at her yet again. "What?"

"You _wanted_ that salad didn't you? Why don't you just admit it? I'm amazing."

This time Cuddy rolled her eyes. "So you were right about the salad, but that extra glass of wine was something I _definitely _didn't want."

House just shrugged. "All right. Well I can't get it right _every time_…but I'm still awesome," he said a bit crankily.

Cuddy stared at him before she started giggling. He looked at her strangely. "You're…giggling."

"I…know," she replied, laughter still pouring from her mouth.

"The Cuddy I know doesn't giggle."

"I…know…"

"Why are you giggling?" he demanded, a frown creasing his forehead.

"Because…it feels…so…good," she choked out, gasping from the lack of air. She hadn't been able to laugh at all in the past couple of weeks and this whole situation was getting more and more hilarious. She was on a 'blind' date with House. The chances of that happening HAD to be at least a million to one.

"Cuddy, if you don't stop laughing right now, you're going to get hysterical," House said, breaking up her thoughts. He was starting to get worried. He could handle a mad Cuddy, an administrative Cuddy, and especially a sexually frustrated Cuddy. But he had NO idea what to do with a hysterical Cuddy.

"I think…I'm already…hysterical," she managed to get out as laughter took over yet again.

"Shit." House searched the restaurant frantically before shouting, "WAITER!" scaring both the waiter as well as some of the other diners. The man came rushing over as fast as he could.

"Is there something you need, sir?" he asked as calmly as possible.

"Yes you know that glass of wine we ordered? We kind of need it."

"No…no wine…" she gasped, "I'm…not….supposed to…be drinking…tonight…"

The waiter hesitated. "NOW," House growled and the waiter jumped.

"Yes, sir, right away, sir." He gave Cuddy an apologetic smile before scurrying away.

"No, no please…come back," she pleaded half-heartedly through her incessant giggles.

House shushed her. "No, you need it more than you think you do. Now come on, deep breaths, Cuddles. You don't want to start crying on me now do you? I thought you said that administrators were made of tougher stuff than that."

"They are," she snapped. "And I'm not going to cry," she said, tears already starting to prick the corners of her eyes. "I just needed to unwind. I haven't been able to laugh like that in weeks." She was still chuckling a little but she was nowhere near as hysterical as she had been two minutes ago.

The waiter appeared with the glass of wine but quickly moved away, not wanting to get yelled at again.

Cuddy, still giggling a little, eyed the glass apprehensively. "Come on, Cuddy. The wine will do you good." She sighed but took a sip anyway. "And we both know that a drunken Cuddy is a happy House." Cuddy glared at him but continued to sip the wine. With each small sip, warmth quickly spread through her body. She felt the hysteria slowly dissipate until she felt calm and rational again.

Before she could say anything, the waiter brought over their appetizers. He was about to walk away again when House stopped him. "Hey where the hell are you going? We still have to order the rest of our food!"

----HOUSE M.D. ----

He stood by the door just staring at her. He said he'd get the coats but was currently just standing there watching her talk to the hostess.

He saw her smile a couple of times and nod before enveloping the woman in a hug and making her way back over to him.

"Do you _normally_ hug your waiters?" he asked as he helped her put on her coat.

Cuddy smiled. "Not always." He held the door open for her and she just managed to conceal her surprise before stepping into the cool night air. House turned and nodded to the hostess who gave him a knowing smile. He shook his head but she just grinned and shooed him out.

"Wow, House," she said as they began walking to her car. "I wish your bedside manner was as good as it was tonight."

"What do you mean?"

"Well first you actually _paid_ for dinner, which I was completely surprised about. I thought you might have at least made me pay for half, if not for the whole thing."

"I didn't pay…I was using Wilson's credit card."

"Mhmm…right…and then you got my coat _for_ me and even helped me put it on…AND held the door open?"

"Well, I didn't want to just stand there while you and the hostess got all mushy and I didn't purposely hold it open for you. I opened it for myself but the mushy hostess distracted me and you took the opportunity and walked out. You used me."

Cuddy snorted. "Uh-huh…and now you're walking me to my car."

House stopped walking abruptly but it was too late; they were already at her car. "Damn." Cuddy chuckled. "Well, it's not happening again. Feel special. Only a few people actually see this side of me, you know. I only do this for people I c–"

Cuddy stopped. "For people you what, House?" she asked after a moment of silence.

He looked away for a moment. "For people I want to see naked. Duh." He waggled his eyebrows and she just smiled and shook her head.

She looked up at him, cerulean blue shining through smoky lashes. "All right, House. But you've walked Wilson to his car before haven't you? What does that mean?" He glowered at her and she giggled. "I had a nice time tonight."

"On this non-date?"

Cuddy smiled again and moved to kiss him on the cheek but at the same time he turned his head slightly and she kiss his lips instead. Both were surprised but as she began to pull away he pushed her up against the side of the car. The innocent kiss quickly turned into fiery passion. Heat coiled in the pit of her stomach and slowly moved through her body, lighting all her nerve endings on fire, as it always did. They broke apart for air and he rested his forehead against hers.

"I know you said you wouldn't even consider dating me, but please," he said, kissing her once more, "consider it."

And with that, he hobbled away toward his bike, leaving her leaning against the car, chest heaving, her mind trying to be in fifteen different places at once.

Shit, she was not supposed to have kissed him. Frankly, there were quite a few things she was not to have done: drink more wine, stay for the date, kiss him, enjoy his company, spend time with him alone….the list went on and on.

She shook her head and slowly made her way to the driver's seat. Her legs were still a little wobbly but House's kisses always made her knees weak. She needed to sit down and think.

She watched the bike speed away and put her head in her hands. Consider it, he said. Consider dating him? How could she do that? When her best friend was still in love with him? When he obviously still had feelings for said best friend…

And yet…it seemed like he had chosen her over Stacy. It looked like he wanted to date _her_…not Stacy…or at least _thought_ he did…

She _wasn't_ going to be his rebound girl or his _second_ choice. She wanted to know that he had picked her because he'd wanted her and only her.

But he'd been amazing tonight at dinner. Even though it was not supposed to be a date, it really had all the qualities of a date. He'd wined and dined her. They had civil conversation as well…well as civil as you could get with House. And her minor meltdown…he'd calmed her down in seconds. He knew exactly what to do because he knew her.

She sighed and put her key in the ignition.

She'd made her decision.

----HOUSE M.D. ----

He unlocked the door and stepped into his apartment. He threw his keys on the side table before slipping off his shoes and ambling toward the kitchen, loosening his tie on the way. He poured himself a scotch, his second of the night, and made his way over to one of the great loves of his life: his piano.

He sat on the bench, flexed his fingers slightly before launching into Billy Joel's "Piano Man". Playing the piano always had a kind of healing effect on him. It calmed his nerves and cleared his mind, especially when he needed to think. Which was what he was doing now.

As the opening chords of the song rang through his apartment, his thoughts drifted to the beautiful woman who he had spent the entire evening with.

It had been a mere coincidence that it had been Cuddy on that date. He should have known. The bio that Wilson had printed out described her to a T…how did he not figure it out?

And then he'd done everything she'd listed earlier: paid for dinner, held the door open, and walked her to her car. He'd done each thing without thinking twice about it and it scared him. Not that it was a bad thing…but usually those things didn't come naturally to him. When he'd gone on dates with Stacy, he'd had to make sure he had done each thing, checking it off his mental checklist.

He sighed and scrubbed a hand over his face. And then they had kissed again by her car.

Well, more like up against her car, said a small voice in a back of his mind and he grinned at the memory. But it had been a total accident. He saw her out of the corner of his eye and turned around to ask her why she was getting into ideal cleavage-staring range when their lips met. She had been just as surprised as he was, yet when she made to pull away, something roared inside of him and the need to keep her there became his first priority.

Kissing her was intoxicating and he wanted nothing more but to stand there and keep doing what they were doing and possibly more, fulfilling one of his more realistic fantasies: car sex.

He sighed. Of course he hadn't been able to act upon that wish. He left before his mind took a backseat to his body. Consider it, he'd said. Well…he left her wanting more and that's all. The ball was in her court now.

The 'Sounds of Silence' abruptly ended and he frowned. When had he changed songs? He was about to start up again when he heard a knock on his door. He took another sip of his scotch before setting it down on a coaster on his piano and going to answer the door.

He leaned against the door and just looked at her.

"I've decided."

House nodded. "I figured as much."

Cuddy scowled and he grinned. "You know what, never mind. I was _going_ to tell you that I wanted to try dating you but that last answer really put it into perspective. Why would I want to date a smug bastard like you? I would be setting myself up for heartbreak. Good night, House."

She turned to walk away but his hand shot out and snagged her wrist. "Setting yourself up for heartbreak, huh?"

"House, let me go."

He pulled her to his chest. "But how would you know if you've never tried?"

"I did try once before remember?"

"That was in the past. This is _now_." For the second time that night, his lips crashed down on hers. And for the second time that night she couldn't pull away. "And besides," he whispered, trailing kisses along her jaw line to her ear, "once you say something you can't take it back. You're dating me." He growled that last sentence into her ear, sending shivers down her spine.

Cuddy moaned as his hand slipped under the hemline of her dress and caressed her thigh. "I'm dating you," she mumbled, yanking off his red tie and fumbling with the buttons on his shirt.

"Hang on a sec," he said, pulling his lips from hers, fingers still trailing along her thigh until he reached the tops of her panties. "I thought you said no sex between friends."

"We're not just friends," she growled into his ear, dragging her teeth across his earlobe. He groaned. "We're dating now. We can do whatever the hell we want." She slid his shirt down his arms and threw it over his head before running her hands over his slightly toned chest.

"Good." He hooked his thumbs into the band of her underwear and dragged them down her legs before throwing them over his shoulder. He didn't spare them another glance.

Where they landed, they didn't know but frankly…they couldn't have cared less.

----------

**And there ya go. Chapter 14 is OFFICIALLY done, thank goodness. And the date is over!! YAY! I mean…XD It was a difficult chapter for me to write because I wanted to get their date **_**perfect**_** which was incredibly hard. I hope it worked out and I hope ya'll enjoyed it. Please as always, read and review!**

**Next update you'll be seeing from me is for A Moment of Madness. Keep an eye out for that. Much love to all!**


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